What happens when you realize you have more time behind you than you have ahead of you?

54 here, so besides for retiring later this year to look forward to I just keep on living knowing there is far more in my life’s rear view mirror.

The way this planet is heading , relief!

It depends on how you look at it.
Most of my life has been used in preparation (education and training), or working. During those years, I had very little spare time.
Now I am retired. I am no longer consumed with making money. Most of my time is free, and I have nothing but free time ahead.

None of us know how long we have on this Earth. But I continue to live like I have another 40 years or so to go. That would put me slightly over 100. I continue to try to grow and make my life what I expect it to be.

I’m on the homeward stretch as well, @Strauss, and I do think about what I want to do and see and what the end game will look like.

You get your shit in one sock, since you haven’t done it already.

I have had three medical events in my life, in my mid-20s, in my mid-30s, and in my mid-40s, that there was no guarantee of surviving, so I have never really counted on having a lot of time left.
In a younger day I was fortunate enough to do bunches of stuff, go bunches of places, have bunches of experiences, and was a bit frenetic about it all.

Now I’m just kind of tired and really enjoy a quieter life. No idea how much time is left, but I don’t really have any unfinished business (well, some paperwork) so whatever is left is left.

I am grateful to have made it this far and done so much.

I don’t look back to “wasted time”; I actively look forward to tomorrow and what is coming up.

I have been dealing with heart issues the last six years, including having a defibrillator implanted, and having a very mild stroke in May of 2021. All those events just bring to the forefront the need to make the most of today.

By the way, I will be 68 in two months

I’ve tried answering this question a few times now but I keep getting distracted by the snow falling outside my window. It’s really pretty. I’m going to enjoy the snow.

I’m 52.

It’s a number. We have no idea when our number comes up. I live for the present day.

I just turned 50 but losing my mom last year has turned my thoughts to the inevitable end. I am okay with death, and I do consider each day a blessing.

@KNOWITALL Just speaking personally, it’s not so much the death as the dying part that worries me. I hate the idea of a long, slow degenerative decline.

Totally agree @janbb when my time is up , just be over not lie in a bed pooping and drooling on myself for weeks or even months.

@janbb and @SQUEEKY2 My mom was a floor supervisor for a nursing home so I grew up around the elderly and dying. Personally I just hope to avoid dementia.

All we ever have is this instant, this wonderful moment that lights up the world.

I’m also on the home stretch. About 5 months ago I started working on my body to help make it useful for the time i have left. Exercising, eating right, a few vitamins, taking some recommended meds, working out.
I have been logging activities and measuring progress on a fitness watch that I’ve been wearing 24/7. And I feel better.

Here’s the amazing thing. My VO2 Max number has increased! i compare myself to the chart of VO2 Max vs age and activity level/ lifestyle. For the same lifestyle level my indicated age has dropped 6 years since i started this! I’ve lost over an inch on my waist and lost a couple of unneeded pounds.
I feel great!
I’m doing what I can to make my performance in the home stretch meet or exceed manufacturer specifications.

Statistically (for gender, race and region) I’m over the hill and on the down slope. And honestly with my messed up gene pool, it may just be a fast tumble to the bottom.

It never really bothered me before having kids. Now it’s not death that terrifies me, but whether or not my kids will be okay on their own.

Then I take some deep breathes and remind myself I can only do my best. And then I keep putting one foot in front of the other.

I’m in my 50s, but my health is not good, including being stage 4 kidney disease. I agree with @SQUEEKY2 but sometimes I think it’s not such a bad thing given the state of the world. But besides that, I have my faith that makes me not worry about the future.
*ducks to avoid all the comments poo pooing religion and faith

@KNOWITALL that is probably one of my biggest concerns, especially since my mom had dementia. I take time every day to read, work the New York Times crossword puzzle, I’m studying another language, anything I can do to keep my brain active to hope to stave that off. I know that’s not a cure all, but I also watched my mom’s general mental health decline over time because with her worsening eyesight, she stopped reading. She had always loved to read, and I do think that enriches your mind. I may not have control over whether I end up with dementia or not, but I’m not going to go down without a fight. And other than dementia, I definitely plan to keep my brain as sharp as possible.

I’m in my mid 50s and people my age are dying more frequently. In our Facebook group for where I live, just the other day a guy died who was about 55. He had moved away so I’m not sure if his death was sudden or he had something chronic going on, but it’s amazing because the last time I saw him, he looked fine.

I retired about a year and a half ago because I figured I didn’t want to deal with stress of learning a new job (I worked for an elected official and she lost her re-election so I would have had to go back to a different job after ten years of not doing it). I also no longer wanted to deal with a long and stressful commute. Money is tighter now but I have to take the good with the bad, and maybe in the future I’ll get a part time job closer to home.

Some days are mundane so it’s not like every day is a walk in the park, but I am grateful for the good things I have and I am eliminating people who I’m realizing may not be the good friends that I thought they were.

I would dread ending up in a nursing home, and that talk that the family has with the prospective nursing home resident where they tell them how nice it will be and how much fun it will be but it’s a one way trip. Hopefully, that time for me is a long time away, and of course I realize that some people never go that route. Hopefully I don’t get a terrible illness but each of us can all only hope for the best.

I have been involved with high school reunions over teh years, and my fiftieth is coming up this summer. Had a long conversation with an old classmate yesterday on trying to reach people, and the conversation got to “well, they have been gone 10, 15 years” etc.

Makes one want to make sure to make the most of today.