George Bernard Shaw said, “You don’t stop laughing when you grow old, you grow old when you stop laughing.”
Brilliant people often get confused. I understand what Shaw is trying to say, but he makes it sound like old is what people don’t want to become. I’m convinced old is a good thing we all should strive toward. I wish I could brag about being older than my 73 years. I find I laugh out loud more today because I have more to laugh about, that my crazy years of youth and midlife give me a huge reservoir of humorous material.
I have the same feeling about people singing about being “young at heart.” In matters of the heart, I’m certain there is an advantage to those who have led a full life of joy and accomplishment. Shouldn’t all the young people want to be “old at heart?”