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2023: The Demise of My Youth
My youthful vigor evaporated overnight
Every day, we’re all one step closer to death.
How’s that for uplifting, fun news? For the most part, none of us know the day or manner of our demise, but that creepy, taloned beast is coming for us all.
Some of us will pass long before the natural end of life. Some may make it to 106 and appear on the cover of Vogue. I don’t know when I’m going, but I hope my last breaths aren’t drawn after a day slugging around and binge-watching Succession.
I don’t “look old,” but man do I feel it as of late.
My parents gifted me with slow-to-age appearance genes. My appearance has essentially remained the same since I entered the arduous journey of adulthood. I’m often mistaken for a twenty-something rather than a forty-something. This used to make me feel great, like I could still conquer the world. Now? When I reveal my true age, people scream in horror and run away.
Alas, 2023 ushered in the demise of my youth. There’s no stopping it now. I write this in the beckoning hope that I’m not alone.
Here are five signs of my newly-minted old age: