As they gathered 'round to sing Happy Birthday, the young waitress asked, "Are you 29 again this year?" "No," I replied, "I'm 57 and proud of it." They sang anyway. I'm not sure why people are ashamed? embarrassed? to tell their age. And it's not just women; men don't like to tell, either. Of course, the older we are, the closer we are to the grave, but why not be thankful for life and all the years God has graced us with?

I've been celebrating all week. My Sunday school class went to Olive Garden Monday night - our monthly get-together. Thursday night Katey, Andy, Katelee & Tucker took me to Outback. And today I'm going to a brunch at the church. All of these were not birthday celebrations, but I'm enjoying them all nonetheless. I'll see Laurie & Molly today, so you can see that it's been a good week.

Last week I went for my yearly physical. Pami was impressed with my weight loss (at least 39 pounds since last year) and my cholesterol & triglyceride counts. (Except for this week) I'm eating a lot healthier and staying with the treadmill & cardio workouts. My tendency to start well, then backslide is something I battle all the time, but feeling better and the prospect of longer quality of life keeps me grounded.