Today is the birthday of one of my greatgrandchildren. I try to write about what matters to me in my own life in this blog and that matters. I think the passage of time and the matter of aging is a fascinating subject. I have some Kindle books about the psychological estimation of time passing. One of these days I may spend more time on understanding how and why it is that if one of twins goes on a long space trip and the other stays here, why one ages differently from the other.
I like the way the society, and I guess most or maybe all societies, pay attention to one's age in years. I realize that one's age is "just a number" but I also realize that number tells quite a bit. When I look someone up on Google and other search engines, I often find related questions about someone's "net worth". That information is about how much money the person has and, especially for older people, that is an important figure. It does determine much of one's experiences, I guess.
However, birthdays are markers along what is probably the most important road we travel. I like to think about the fact that when a certain moment comes on today's clock, I can say with some accuracy that I am a year older. I haven't heard of anyone adjusting his report of his age because of different time zones for the hour of birth and now. But even if one's age is thought of in general terms and is only approximate, there are important and very real and firm differences between living a dozen days, a dozen months and a dozen years.
I congratulate everyone who has a birthday today. Every birthday matters and each one is an important accomplishment. Good work!
