December 3rd, 2007
Party Conversations In Midlife
You know that you are in or near midlife when the big topic at parties comes around to doctor visits. It doesn’t matter if the group is of men or of women. The conversation can go on and on about ailments and doctor visits. This became distinctly obvious to me in my forties; I was attending a party with friends from my neighborhood. My husband, who was rarely ill and never missed work was missing from that fateful party because he didn’t feel well. (How funny was that?) He would have been thoroughly annoyed because it was hard to change the subject.
Some of our friends were a little older, so they were into the age of the colonoscopy. As you know, the colonoscopy is the recommended diagnostic tool for those reaching the age of fifty to look for early colon cancer. I can understand a short mention of the colonoscopy, due to the fact it is a “landmark” of middle age. But, I ask you, why all of a sudden should conversation be around moaning and complaining of aches and pains as if that were a badge of honor?
Of course, when you are in your forties or fifties, you do have many more preventative tests, and body parts do begin to slow up and wear down, but does it really help to stand around and talk about all that as if there was nothing else to talk about?
This incident was my indoctrination into midlife. Other than that I was in total denial about my age. I discovered going to the gym and felt better than I had in years. I really didn’t want to hear about the aches and pains and doctor visits. That sounded like a conversation I would hear in the company of eighty year olds. I didn’t want to rush the process of being in that place.
Therefore whenever the talk about doctor visits comes up at a party I change the subject. I would rather hear about the great book my friends are reading or movies they have seen, or the latest business challenge.
That is just my two cents.
Until next week,
Lorraine
