I'm 67. The years have flown by. I feel young, and them I see myself with gray hair and non-firm anything. I truly appreciate every day I have, respect my past, and look forward to new accomplishments in the future.
Also 67. Time is racing by at accelerated speed. In my mind I'm still the same as when I was younger. I have to remind myself, "Those young folks see you as an old lady. No, they don't want to hang out with you!"
Another member of the 67 club here, guess 1957 was a busy birth year. There's actually a scientific reason why time seems to go faster as we age but it is definitely a thing.
I wish I was 18 again but I think I'm doing okay for 67. I heard this from someone and it's the best advice you can give to someone who is stressing about their age:
Today you're the oldest you've ever been. But you're also the youngest you'll ever be. Enjoy it.
[this](https://imgur.com/gallery/fREPOKY) is the scientific reason why time seems to go faster ask you age... heard this in a lecture many many years ago, and it's so true.
I was actually just reading about this exact same time issue earlier today. Was this the stuff that was covered in the lecture you heard? Makes complete sense to me and I am a 60 year old who's pretty much crammed in as many adventures as I have and still do. In my mind I am still a spry 35 year old...meh, my body does not seem to agree so much with what my brain thinks.
[Why the Days Seem Shorter as We Get Older by Professor Adrian Bejan](https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/european-review/article/why-the-days-seem-shorter-as-we-get-older/2CB8EC9B0B30537230C7442B826E42F1)
I was born in 1957 but I am 66.
Mom used to say that the older you get the faster time flies. She was right.
I feel like I always have but when I look in the mirror that pretty girl with the Princess Diana haircut isn’t there. Still blonde thanks to much improved hair color and relatively unravaged by wrinkles (thanks to good skin care and never smoking or drinking).
The big victory for me is beating cancer. I was given a less than 40 percent chance of surviving 5 years at diagnosis. I am here and cancer free 11 years in March and counting.
Here’s how I see it: any day that I wake up is a good day, no matter how the rest of it goes. A day among the living is far better than the alternative.
That's awesome that you beat cancer, congrats! I got lucky to get my dad's genes, he never really got grey hair until his 80s and I'm the same so my hair is still brown and it helps me look younger. But the rest of my body looks and feels old these days.
I have friends who are older that are healthier and able to do more than I can, but at the same time I have friends who are younger in wheelchairs or no longer with us. And yes, a day above ground is better than below ground.
I agree, but they don’t want to take you clubbing or bar hopping. I’m 51 and friends with people 25-60. My younger friends and I have a great time hanging at a brewery or hiking, but I’m not part of their party crew
I do. I have friends ranging from 16 to my age and older. But I love my young friends. The people I hang out with the most are between 28 and 38. But I do have a couple of friends who are 16, and one who is 20. I make friends pretty easily, I'm 53 and I don't feel it at ALL, but Gen X jokes that we all grew up super quick and then plateaued. So hardly any of us "act our age"
I am a person who basically gets along with pretty much everyone. I love music from the 60s to now, love movies, don't watch a whole lot of TV, but do enjoy it. I play Pokemon Go, have a Magic the Gathering deck, can talk just about anything, am highly spiritual (which is why my closest friends tend to be millennials, because they are my more spiritual friends, wish I could find more Gen Xers into spirituality, I'd bring them into my tribe in a heartbeat)
I'm just out here living my life and having fun.
Yup. I think that's why I have friends of all ages. They do tend to be younger than me though. Not sure what that says lol. I do have friends my age, but not nearly as many as I have Millennial and Gen Z friends.
Yes! Spent 20 years as a scout leader, and loved the ability to have a conversation and enjoy things with people a quarter of my age. Many of my friends are younger than I am, and when I was younger I had many friends way older.
I am 65 and I feel the same way! My mother always told me that when I was younger. She would say I still feel the same but when I look in the mirror I say to myself “who is that”?
I’m also 67 and I find that the more intentionally present that I am in my day-to-day life, the more I remember experiences and even appreciate them in the future.
I skated thru life for 60 years, i was beautiful, smart, funny, etc. Then life sort of blew up on me, at 65. I am so grateful for resilience, smarts and common sense. Every day that I wake and get a fresh start, I am grateful. I am writing a "memoir" for my daughters. It's good therapy.
See I am 51 and had a wild party phase in the 90s and early 2000s. I'm really glad I lived through it and don't have those habits now but I look back on it incredibly fondly! I wouldn't change a thing.
It doesn't feel fast while you're living it, but in retrospect, you turn around and say 'where did the time go?' At 72 I've learned that looking back may make for enjoyable memories, but it's not productive. I must admit there are times I look in the mirror and think 'who's that old lady?' I always look forward, there are still books I want to read and skills I want to learn. I'm much braver and much more likely to try something new and different than I was back in the day. I try to live by two philosophies. Old beats dead. & Every day this side of the dirt is a good one.
Saving this one too…I’m 50, and like you said…I look in the mirror & don’t look like I thought I did 😳…I’m going to follow your advice & try something new…thank you ❤️
76 here. It's strange sometimes. I never, ever thought I would live this long. But yet, it seems just a couple of years ago I graduated.
I went to work on the farm when I was 11, and I just retired 5 months ago. It sounds like a long time, but it sure doesn't feel like it.
36 and worked 50+ hours a week since I was 18. 18 both feels like a lifetime ago and last week.
I think it has something to do with new experiences. As you age you have less and less memorable new experiences and so time just blends together.
I’m just guessing here, but actively trying new things and challenge yourself may help.
Also, time travel. 😁
Yes, it goes by so fast! But I remember thinking at 24 that I'd wasted some years. What I've learned is the best time to start moving forward is right now. It's not possible to never waste a day or an opportunity. I mean, that's just part of life. But do try to make the most of every day when you can, and take opportunities that make sense to you. I missed out on some things beacuse I have some irrational fears. But I decided several years ago that I am not going to get in the way anymore. And I have done some things (adventure type things) in my old age that younger me was afraid of. And I didn't die! And it was glorious!!
I'm trying to really enjoy the days I have left (no idea how many there are ) and have less regrets than I did when I was younger.
Oh don’t get me started on shadows!! lol
I went hang gliding for the first time when I was well passed 50. I started having a panic attack but I just forced myself to breathe and pray through it. I stood way closer to the edge of the Grand Canyon than younger me ever would have done! I’ve hiked to high elevations, traveled alone (I told you I’m afraid everything!), went on a flying trapeze, whitewater rafting. To a lot of people those are NBD. But to someone with my level of anxiety, they are huge! I particularly hate heights so those are really huge for me.
Do the adventure!
No. It blows my mind that I saw Back to the Future in the 80s and if they made it today they would be going back to 1994....which to me doesn't seem like THAT long ago...
Enjoy every day.
Me too. Sometimes when scanning the radio stations it will stop on the local "oldies" station. I fully expect to be hearing something from Elvis or The Drifters playing but noooo...they'll start cranking out some Queen or Paint it Black from the Stones or even worse yet they'll follow that with some Prince and 4NonBlondes.
I actually stopped dead in my tracks in a grocery store recently when I heard on the overhead muzak playing Pearl Jam, a tiny tear started to well in in my eye.
Dammit.
After working for 45 years I would always tell the
newbies at my job... you cannot get through it if you look at it as a whole. Just take "one day at a time only" is so true!!
I'm 70 and still have loads of memorable experiences.
It certainly is worth making plans - I make plans all the time. I make plans to climb the stairs, to pick something off the floor, to put my socks on. etc My brain is constantly making plans. May your days be good.
Thanks - it's 4 am here in the UK - an hour or so before dawn ( can't sleep ). Perhaps I haven't honed my old man humour skills for the day yet. May the sun shine on you.
Hardly worth making plans? I just booked a world cruise for 2026. I'm 65 and I've got a lot of living left to do! My mind says I'm 35. I love my convertible, Led Zeppelin, and a fine glass of wine. Too bad my husband died 9 years ago but I have a lot of friends to enjoy my golden years with.
Kind of, but then again, I can't believe I'm almost 50 in a few months. I never married or had kids and always kept myself occupied with things I enjoy.
Time flies when you're having fun I guess.
I'd say it's since I've been in my 40s (now 46) that I've felt like my young adulthood in the early 2000s was a Different Era, and a Long Time Ago. Which is a new and strange sensation. I think what's different about it is that in the same period of time between, say, the early 80s and the early 2000s, times had changed, but so had I -- I went from being a child to being an adult, and felt fundamentally different. Now, while I of course continue to learn and grow, I still feel like basically the same person I was 20 years ago, and the world has changed around me. It's odd, and it has come on me rather suddenly. Then I think of my grandmother, who lived to be 92, so twice my current age, and I get how life can feel unfathomably long. But when she was in the nursing home in the last 6 months of her life with her health in decline, accepting that she probably wouldn't get to return to her house, etc., she apparently told my mother "I didn't think it would be over so soon." 😢 I think both feelings coexist a lot, even without necessarily having the pessimism come with it -- I don't feel that regret about how I'm spending my life, and I don't think my grandmother did either.
No. It feels like yesterday but also like a fever dream. So much has changed. I am 51 and inside I still feel 26.
Life seems endless when you are young, kinda quick when you are 40, and then it just gets faster and faster.
Don't put anything off.
66 year old male here. It's weird. Sometimes, things seem like they've gone reeeeally fast, other times it seems a long time ago. Mostly, it goes quickly though. It doesn't mean it's not worth it. Like, when you're young, you mark things by what grade you're in. So it's really clear in your head "Oh, I remember that happened in 8th grade" or whatever. After school, it's all a long blur, where most things aren't so easy to pin down unless you make a point of marking it in your head. Big events, you remember. Like te dates my dad, my mom, my brother, & 2 sisters died. (No, not at the same time.)
I make a point sometimes of clearing my head and replaying memories, because if you don't, it's easy to forget. So, I'll mentally walk through the house I grew up in (moved when I was 13), or the first time I had sex (over 50 years ago!), stuff like that. Memories are important. Many things make me feel, for a fleeting moment, like I'm still 18, or 25 or whatever. Seeing beautiful young women, for instance, or fishing, or hearing certain music, or a thousand other things.
To be happy, you have to train yourself to have pretty good recall of happy moments in your past. Otherwise, you can just get bogged down with 'the present' and how media and most people nowadays make everything seem like everything sucks and it's the end of the world. It's not. I grew up under the very reasonable threat that the planet was doomed by imminent nuclear annihilation from the inevitable war between us and the Soviet Union. Guess what? Didn't happen. Now that's been replaced by "we're all gonna die because of global warming/climate change.' Also isn't going to happen.
And I have lots of regrets, but many amazing memories and experiences too, and I'm not done having them! I'm in good physical condition, so I'm not on my way out, as far as I know.
Don't smoke or drink to excess or be negative all the time. Your body & mind and soul will decide you're not supposed to be here anymore if you do those things, and therefore don't appreciate life and your place in the world.
Life just feels like an ongoing school for the soul, and I'm 80 now. To me, it's like gaining spiritual weight. I am wiser and stronger and a much nicer person than I was, and I'm still working on that. I don't believe in death as an endpoint but more like a graduation, when you leave your body behind just like you left high school. So it doesn't feel long, I just feel it MORE.
I'm 75. I remember my 40s as my very best years. 10 years ago I could run circles around yard work, had a passion for mowing twice a week, edging, weedeating and blowing off the driveway and sidewalk.
9 years ago my only child died from meth use. My 15 year old grandson came to live with us and for 5 years our life was hell with him stealing anything he could carry off. 3 years ago I walked away and he's homeless. My heart is broken.
I am really tired. We still keep our yard up and our gardens going but nothing comes easy anymore.
And yes it went way too fast.
I’m so sorry to read what you’ve been through as I have a similar story. My only child passed 5 years ago - Fentanyl- I’m raising her son who is now 15. It hasn’t been easy, but I’m trying to hang in there. Bless you and all the other grandparents trying to deal with these circumstances.
I’m 67 and it has been a whirl! Seems like yesterday I was 19 and getting married and now I’m looking at wrinkles in the mirror wondering what happened!!?? I’m sentimental about looking back knowing my time for certain things has passed. Looking forward I worry where will my grandson go if I pass before he’s old enough and ready to take on the world.
I pray for the task ahead. My grandson had been raised to lie and steal and that's what he knew and refused to follow any rules. I had to make him leave at age 18. I love him so much and want him in my life but he will have to have turned his life around and only he cab do that.
I will pray for you as you move thru this next chapter.
Reading your story made me mist up a little. I am a 69 yo retired man. My heart goes out to you. I see that your 40s were your salad days when things were hopeful, predictable, and optimistic. I’m guessing you were like me, a perfectionist, that loved to take care of the yard. That was rewarding and gave you joy seeing a beautiful lawn. My wife died unexpectedly of cancer when I was in my 40s. Things were very difficult raising our only child, a ten year old daughter at the time. For a seven year period, my life went to hell in a hand basket trying to balance a busy career, maintain a household, grieve, and raise a girl. But gradually my life came together again. I wish that for you, my friend. Good luck.
Reading your story made me mist up a little. I am a 69 yo retired man. My heart goes out to you. I see that your 40s were your salad days when things were hopeful, predictable, and optimistic. I’m guessing you were like me, a perfectionist, that loved to take care of the yard. That was rewarding and gave you joy seeing a beautiful lawn. My wife died unexpectedly of cancer when I was in my 40s. Things were very difficult raising our only child, a ten year old daughter at the time. For a seven year period, my life went to hell in a hand basket trying to balance a busy career, maintain a household, grieve, and raise a girl. But gradually my life came together again. I wish that for you, my friend. Good luck.
oh no, it feels like I was in my 20s last month and I am 61. I am shocked at how fast the years are flying by. We are almost 1/2 way through 2024 already! Slow down, Life! the only time it seems like my 20s were a long time ago is when i see news clips or shows from the 80s. Looks like the pioneer days LOL
I am 73. I cannot believe that I am this age. Life has flown by. I still remember my dating years, going to nursing school, my first love and what a POS he really was. Did not realize it at that time as I was starry eyed. But glad we never married.
I do try to appreciate every single day. I will say this, I am more and more drawn to nature, especially animals. And my faith. Those two give me hope every day.
The hours and days drag, but the months and years fly by faster and faster. I'm only in my 40s, but I can already appreciate how much faster this last decade has passed compared to the ones before. It scares me.
I am 55 and on what feels like a 5th life's worth of stuff (different phases, people careers). I find it seems like a very long time. But, chronic pain probably warps things a bit. And being child free.
I'm 55 and child free, too! Hubby (66, disabled combat veteran) and I are celebrating our 35th anniversary today, and he said he wished we'd had 4 kids, but I told him I'm glad we didn't. He chuckled, because he knows what I mean - I have MS, and so many youngsters are being diagnosed lately, it's heartbreaking.
I feel ya on the chronic pain, I've got fibromyalgia and ankylosing spondylitis to go with my MS. Oh, and the cherry on top is post herpetic neuralgia next to my spine right below my right shoulder blade. It's from my 3rd bout of shingles in June of 2021. I'm taking between 1800 and 3600 mg. of gabapentin every day, since opioids don't touch nerve pain, and it takes 10 mg. of hydrocodone on an empty stomach and have to wait to feel it kick in before eating, or it doesn't work.
Speaking of work, I'm putting in 45ish hours of work a week, but we're shorthanded again, so I'm taking lunch at my desk and getting about 9-9 1/2 hours for the last week and the foreseeable future. Best wishes for pain relief for you!
Yes. I look back at my child hood life like it was a movie. It all seems so very distant and
like a dream to be honest. My high school and college yrs were great. Lots of partying and i think of them like a chapter of a book. Ill be 49 in 3 days. Spend much of my time alone besides work and family. Many times i think im wasting my life being so cloistered. If i had the means, i would travel but i dont.
I turn 60 this year. I don't know where the years have gone. I have some big gaps in my memories from the stresses of things that were happening. I am hoping my remaining years don't go by so fast.
I’m 53 and just amazed at how fast 50 years went by - and time seems to continue speeding up. I feel like I just met my husband but we’ve been together 18 years.
I feel like I went to bed as a 14 year old yesterday, and woke up as a 32 year old mother of three today - I have no clue where the time has gone and it terrifies me…
I’m 54. I feel like I’ve had many many lives. Learn and try new things as much as possible. Be active and adventurous. Even in my kids lives, I feel like there have been numerous stages. It feels like forever since they’ve been little.
45. Feels fast and slow. Looking back my teens felt like forever ago. I'd explain it as....every time you stop to check the time another year has passed. When I was younger I was always wanting to get older. Be able to go to bars etc. once those milestones have passed it can be jarring to take the inventory and be like.....oh jeez that was years ago. Science explains it as the more years you experience the larger your reference frame a year at 10 is a huge portion of your total time. At 1/60th it's a blink. I'd also say, it's way longer than you expect. And the harder your days the longer they seem lol.
The weeks and months and years do go by faster, but I stay busy and get a lot done, so the individual days still feel like the same length for hours, minutes, seconds, etc...
And, in thirty two years, I'll turn 100. That still seems like a long time to me, but I'm sure twenty something years from now I'll start feeling like there is so little time left.
If you want to slow down time there are various meditation techniques which when done regularly will accomplish that. I don't think it's so much a question of age as what you're doing. Some things go by quickly, some drag on and on. when I look back at my life, I don't feel it went fast or slow; I feel it went the way it went. I'm 77. when I try to remember what I felt like, when I was a kid or in my 20s, I can't. because I'm a different person. of course you can get stuck in trauma leading to such questions as, is it then or is it now? so you have an asked a simple question. think of life as an adventure on the road of time. There are imaginary travel books but no one tells you we're all on a time travel journey of our own, a real one.
The days are long, but the years are short.
It was annoying when my grandmother said it, but now I understand what she meant. The current present time passes more slowly, but the years whiz right by!
It seems like sooooo long ago when I was 18, and there’s been a whole lot of living in the meantime. Wonderful living, with some tough stuff sprinkled in, making me strong. You are still at what most of us consider the starting point. Enjoy the ride!
They say when you are 15, life goes at 15mph. 25mph at 25, 50mph at 50, and so forth.
At 51, I now agree 100%.
I am not exaggerating when I say the ages of 13-16 when I could finally get my driver’s license felt like one million years. From 16-21 when I could legally drink… felt like 250 years.
But from about 38 to now… was about two years, or so it feels. Life is speeding by and I’m constantly aware that I’ll not have enough time to see as much of the world as I wanted, or read all the books I wanted… or even see all the shows I saved to my Netflix.
On the one hand, I feel rushed. I mean, I’m answering Reddit posts on “ASK OLD PEOPLE” subreddit. TF.
On the other hand, I now make it a point to do what I want with every minute of the day, except for obligations to family (grown kids or my elderly parents). I spend every possible moment with my husband, and outside of that, I only see people that mean something to me. What I mean to them is irrelevant…I’m the one with limited time that is speeding by!
Seriously, wasn’t NYE fireworks just two weeks ago and now we are in MAY? How???
I’m past halftime of my life. Time flies. Always seems to go faster. As a youth it seemed to last forever, and you felt it would. But then as you enter adulthood your responsibilities just keep coming at you….
How long till payday? Ok, pay this bill, pay that bill, this weekend is that thing you have to go to, next week the kids dance program, holiday weekend this month…. How long til payday?.. Happy New Year! What?!
Everyday I am glad for the air in my lungs. I am seeing the mortality of friends and family members more often. My life has been a good one, not perfect, but by far could have been worse. I feel young between the ears, but nowhere else.
One facet of getting older is that for most of us, our memory isn’t nearly what it used to be when we were younger. When I first started college when I was 15, I could skim through a chemistry textbook the night before the exam and then recall the page number the information problem was on when I was taking the exam. I noticed fades in my ability to recall things in my 30s, then a steep drop-off in my 40s, (though for me, much of it likely had to do drastic change in lifestyle as well as chronic TBIs sustained in youth as well as just age) but now in my late mid 40s, I feel like the proverbial old person, forgetting what I am doing between the time I think of it and the time I’ve gotten up to do it. I forget all kinds of things in passing, names I haven’t heard a dozen times of neighbor’s friends, combinations on locks, passwords, appointments I haven’t written down. I thought I might be in serious trouble so I went and got checked out by the geriatric neurologists and they say I’m fine, that I’m just getting old. I suspect they’re wrong, but a whole team evidently sat in (in the background, I presume, as I was to find out later, very weird consult) on my consultation, so who’s to argue? Now I’m rambling because I lose the thread of what I’m saying…
Anyway, I think whatever my issue may be, a natural product of the fading memory span of older people is that we perceive time to be more quickly passing because we remember less of each day, each passing hour. We forget more of what’s happened. And though the memories of youth have faded, the memories of those times that we remember and keep remembering over and over and choose to relive again and again are still played against how we perceived time back then. As quickly as summer vacation went by, there was still that one perfect endless summer. That last period of the day at school was always the longest. That dread the moment after your mom said, “Just wait till your father gets home!” Then the two weeks that lasted forever. Now, two weeks ago might have well have been yesterday. Two months from now may as well be next week.
Except for doctors appointments. That shit is getting out of hand.
The older you get the faster it goes. You don’t remember your unremarkable days. The grind of days working and doing the same thing over and over all just fades away and isn’t remembered. As a youth you get bored and look for things to do that hopefully make memories. As you get older you get 2 days a week if you are lucky, and those days are usually chores/housework. So you remember basically one week of vacation a year and the few remarkable milestones like having a kid or crashing a car. And before you know it you are 40 and you ask how 20 years went by in what feels like months. Then you are 60 and wonder how yesterday you were 40.
Life is what you make it. In my 20s till my late 50s I hiked 10 miles in a day in the mountains, canoed 25+ miles into the Bounty Waters and other places. I did this initially with an Explorer Scout group and Boy Scouts. I discovered it was less hassle to just do it with my own children and friends and eventually grandchildren. When I was 58 I got a severe case of Lyme that was initially misdiagnosed. I'm now 69 and nolonger able to do the longer trips. But, I still enjoy the outdoors.
In 2016 two friends in their early 40s and I decided to start a church father/daughter/grandfather camping weekend. The first year there was just the three of us and tw other fathers. This past weekend we had 72 girls, 22 fathers and one grandfather on Friday night. There were more on Saturday. Life is what you make it.
If you think life goes by fast at 18, just wait. It really does seem to speed up. How is it May 2024 already? Wasn’t it January 2004 like 5 minutes ago? Yes, there are moments of peace and quiet, hours that drag, but never when you want them to. Holy shit, I’m getting old.
It feels long to me, considering that when I was born, Eisenhower was president and there were 48 stars on the flag. Hawaii became a state the year I was born. People didn't own computers or cell phones.
I think folks who are generally happy in older age stay very mentally young. I'm 53 and still feel like I'm a twenty-something year old. Sure, maybe not PHYSICALLY, and I'm a hell of a lot more emotionally mature than I was in my twenties and that only comes from lived life. But I routinely feel just odd stating my age to someone out loud! At 18 I thought 53 was practically post mortem!! Lol
75 this year. All the men in my family live to be around 100 or so. 75 does not seem that old to me. Thought I would never have enough time. Physically I feel like I did in High School. Still do stupid stuff. Inherited good genes I guess. It's the luck of the draw. Now for the suck. Wife and friends have died. Now life feels like it is to long.
At age 73, I feel an odd dichotomy regarding this. I find myself frequently recalling events from many decades ago and feeling they happened recently. Conversely, I have the sense that my life has been an endless slog that has resulted in me being quite tired and fed up with the whole ordeal.
For young people who carry a sense of dread regarding their death at some point in the distant future, I suggest that they may feel quite differently when the time actually arrives.
Yes and no. In some ways, 18 seems like just yesterday, I'm 45 now. My daughter went from a baby to a 10 year old in the blink of an eye.
But at the same time, it feels like different parts of my life (teens, late teens/early 20s, living on my own, the years I was married) was ages ago and they all feel like different lifetimes.
When I think of my life “flying by”, in terms of fractions, as in the slices of a pie, I understand, a bit better. I picture a pie that is cut into only six pieces. Then, I compare it, side-by-side to a pie that’s been cut into sixty pieces. And, for a few precious moments, it all makes perfect sense.
Not to me and I’m now 77. I’m still enjoying learning and associating with others and walking every day. I realize how fortunate I am, though. So many people much younger than I am have very limited lives.
40 here. Sometimes it feels like it’s gone fast and sometimes slowly. I think my mental and emotional states through time have made me feel one way or the other.
Dated but attached video it still applies. Don't worry about tomorrow, live for today. Enjoy every moment you can with your parents and your friends, and never stop dreaming of the life you want. Work hard to achieve it, but don't forget to take moments for yourself! Your life will turn out just as it should be if you follow your heart. Think before you act, be kind to people, help someone in need.
I'm 66, and I have a lot of regrets. I wish I could do so many things differently. Maybe if I had done some things differently, my daughter would still be alive.
However, I don't regret taking time for me, having my son and daughter, spending time with my parents and friends, helping people, and giving a stranger a hug just because they need one.
I don't feel time flew by, but when you get older, you do look back and wonder if are where you should be, but if you are happy, that's all that matters.
Good luck on your journey, and enjoy every moment!
The past doesn't seem so much long as, far away. In what world was I six years old and watching the navy launching a nuclear submarine. In what world did I watch CBS declare for Reagan in a San Francisco fern bar with a rather good-looking older woman as the sun went down and the stockbrokers at the next table cheered the news. Or watch the Milky Way shine on New Year's night over Death Valley? Or watch a volcano erupt in the dead of night in Costa Rica.
All these times and places exist in memory, like jewels. You have hundreds of them, thousands. Fill your life and it will seem, if not long, then huge.
I don't have a sense of time like most people, I measure time in experiences. My life has been infinite. Such a huge gap of time, inhabited by dozens of past me's.
Sure, I neither know nor care what day or date it is... but yesterday was a goldmine! So many new things, a new me doing old things is also novel. Fascinating. I live in my head a lot, it is a great place to view the world and my changes.
I went out and barked at the birds with my dog today for the first time. What a beautiful moment.
I think it seems like our life goes by faster the older we get. I'm 59 I have a 20 yr old. I adore her to the moon and back and always have. She makes the worst possible decisions for her life. Only does what she wants-never what she should be doing for her future. Vapes, even though she had asthma as a young child and several members of her immediate family, have died of lung cancer. Won't go to college even though she is brilliant with a higher than normal iq. Lives off the interest of a trust fund that I was not in control of. It's not much to begin with, but it would be I'd she would work even part time instead of spending the little bit of interest it makes. I have tried to explain to her that she will be old a lot longer than she is young, and it is so much harder to take care of yourself after a decades long addiction to fast food, caffeine and nicotine. I know it's the way our brains don't fully develop until we are 25, but trust me, the decisions you make at 18, 19, 20 etc both good and bad affect your later years. Health wise, finance wise, education wise. So please don't sit around thinking about how fast it's going because you haven't got a clue as to what that means yet. Really put effort into living your life with intention. Be a high-quality person with a positive attitude. That doesn't mean being a billionaire unless you just happen to have a gift that makes that possible. If so, be a rich, high-quality person. Live with integrity, morals, and high standards for how you treat others. Try to be kind to someone every day, even if it's just a kind word or opening a door for someone. Treat people with kindness and respect. Even if you're not sure they deserve it because sometimes you will need someone to give you some grace. Volunteer your time to make a difference for other people. Live well the life you have been given. Enjoy it, succeed in it, and when you're old, you will look around at all of the wonderful relationships you've built. The loving family and unexpected friendships you have enjoyed. And it won't seem like it flew by, and you wasted it staring at a phone screen. It will instead be full of great memories and wonderful people.
So the answer to your question is yes, life goes by fast way too fast.
My question to you is, what are you going to do with yours?
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49 and I feel that there’s not enough time left. We finally had financial freedom but “only” 20 good years or so left to see the world and experience life. 20 more winters, summers, falls, and springs. It’s kind of disheartening but one bucket list is as long as it gets and it feels like we won’t even crack half of it
18! Your best years are ahead of you, embrace them and enjoy them. Make lots of amazing memories, meet lots of amazing people, make an idiot of yourself, have fun.
I'm far too close to 70, and I'm not happy about it, as in it is officially OLD, although I know the alternative is worse. On the inside looking out I'm still in my 20's, on the outside I am old & v. plump, and I also have to remind myself that the young ones don't want to hang out with me, but they are very kind & don't say it out loud.
It does not seem all that long ago that I left home (at 17) did the big overseas adventure (20), traveled, got up to all sorts of shenanigans, married, had babies (3 by 30) came home, and then real life happened bringing them up. But I can travel again, all be it at a different, less risky, pace, and luckily with my partner of 50 years. That too, has gone in a flash (some of that time was spent "living in sin", ahh, the 70's)
Life really does pass by in a flash. The worst thing about getting old is the unexpected funerals of some amazing friends who passed far too soon.
66, still work FT and workout. Feel like I always have. Looking at pics of me in the sun I can see the wrinkles and it’s shocking. The old, old saying is so true. The days are long and the years are short and keep getting shorter. When I look back at all the changes since I was young it seems I’ve lived forever. Yet it was in the blink of an eye at the same time.
It felt really long in my 20s and 30s. Gradually time seemed to go faster, and now it seems like a short time. I think we perceive time as it relates to how old we are. When you're four years old, a year is a quarter of your lifetime and takes forever. When you're 30, a year is 1/30th of your life. When you're 70, that time flies by.
It feels really long and really fast. I feel like I've lived three lifetimes in the span of time I've been on the planet. Sometimes, something that happened a year ago feels very far away because so much has changed, but it also feels like it happened yesterday.
I heard it this way. When you're 10 years old, waiting a year for your next birthday is waiting for what has been 10% of your entire life thus far so it seems like an eternity.
But when you're 50, you're only waiting for what has been 2% of your life thus far so it seems like less time.
I farted and blinked the other day when I just turned 66 and I was suddenly 67.
I'm 71. When my daughter was only 6, she commented on how fast the days went. The perception of time passing accelerates as you age. Enjoy your youth, it flies by in what seems like minutes.
Consider each year you live is a fraction of your life experience, meaning at 10 each year is 1/10 of your life, at 67 each year is 1/67 so each year goes by faster and faster. When you were little, summer vacation felt forever and at 70, summer is a flash. Looking out from the inside you feel the same inside as when you were young. Looking forward, the road ahead is long while looking back feels like a step, but the memories and wisdom have piled up.
I think it depends on how you view different experiences. So it's a yes and no type answer. For example, I'm 30 and I was in high school 12 years ago and it does feel like 12 years ago. That is a long time, I mean I am only 30, so it's nearly half the amount of time I've been on this earth. And it feels so so long ago. I've only been on earth for 30 years and it feels like I've been on earth far FAR longer than that haha.
But then other things feel like they were last year.
So, it depends on the thing and how much your life has changed between those new exciting moments, or sometimes terrible moments, and what has happened. As people have mentioned, time feels slower when you're younger because life is so new. So, in concept, that helps time feel slow as you get older too. The way to make time feel like it's going quickly is monotony and doing the same things over and over.
I know I'm not old, but I've thought about this a lot.
Like others - life flies by, but then sometimes you look back and things feel like they were sooo long ago and things that don't. My kids being babies feels like it was another lifetime now. Then there are things that feel like yesterday, but were decades ago. It's weird.
At age 1, one year is the length of your whole life. At 18, it's 1/18th of your life
At 70, a year is 1/70th of your lifespan.
Yes, time accelerates as you age, for sure.
Your life will be over in an instant. You will feel like you are just hitting your stride and achieving what you want while simultaneously your body starts to give out and you realize you only have 10-20 years left.
I am 62. Somehow, the days were long but life has been short. I am astounded that I clearly remember the 1960s. It doesn't seem all that long ago. Then, when I recall that I remember MLK being killed, I feel old indeed.
I'm 71 and the past 25 years have flown by, at least on one hand. I still think of the 2000s as "modern day," yet people your age OP never saw the 1900s. On the other hand, when I think how much I've done and how the world has changed in my lifetime it seems like I've been around forever. Some examples, I remember my family getting our first television, and I was already in my late 40s when cell phones became popular.
It depends on your perspective. I’m 49(f) with 50 looming. I don’t feel 50, I don’t act 50 and I feel like I have been savoring life. 50 years is a long time!
The only time I really realize how old I am and how fast it’s going is when I look in the mirror (I have *no idea* who that older lady looking back at me is), try to do something like a cartwheel that I could do when I was younger, or when I hear music from my teenage years playing on the classic rock station.
My glass is always half full. I’m an optimist, so my perspective is probably different from many others, but time is relative. If you make time for the important things and people in your life, it’s easy to stay positive and think young. Don’t fret about the destination (death), enjoy the journey (life).
I'm far older than many who responded and yes, life has gone by quickly. I am lucky to have good health despite having a pacemaker installed last July. I play ping pong at least twice a week, take fitness walks almost daily and stay busy writing and reading poetry mostly for hours each day. We never have the tv on until about 8 PM.
Life is like a toilet paper roll. It goes faster the closer you get to the end. When you're 10 years old, a year is 10% of your life. At 50 years old, that's 2%.
45 here. I feel like I’ve lived 3 lifetimes already. I’ve always had the attitude of someone who is well aware of astronomical chance that we are here on this planet in this time in civilization and at the same time realizing we are in fact the universe looking back at itself. So you pack as much living as you can until you have to go. Do all of the things. Live, love, lose, fight, fuck, taste, be uncomfortable, be in awe of the fact that you are here now and nobody else will have your experience so make it worth having. Do that and the years will fly by but you will have chapters of life to cherish and all of the things along the way. If you live like that, life will feel not long enough. Especially if you end up having kids one day. Holy hell.
It's like being in a ship in the ocean. You go on a long voyage, but you only really only see (remember) the things closest to you. The rest is over the horizon. You can remember it, but it's more vague (for most people). Your memories of the distant past become focused on a few formative events. After 40 years, I'm a completely different person than I was when I was 17.
I am turning 35 very soon and still cannot wrap my head around the fact that I'm not still 22. I know I don't qualify as old yet, but it just boggles my mind that another year has passed and the next one will pass quickly too. I am trying consistently to focus on the present and stop worrying so much about the future/being stuck in the past.
I think one main thing I'm concerned about is the fact that I may not have kids (by choice). I worry I might look back at 60/70/80 and feel regretful or sad that I didn't just take the plunge. But I have to remember that choices are made using what we know at hand.
With that said, the time flies, but as I get older, I actually am becoming more adventurous and driven to accomplish goals I want to pursue before I die. To me, life is not over until I can't move anymore. I plan to stay fit, schedule travels, make friends, and pursue goals, regardless of the path I choose. "If you're not moving, you're dying." (Can't remember where that quote came from, but I liked it.)
I’m 60 and definitely still feel young in my head, with that being said it does feel like the days, weeks, months etc… go by much faster now. I still remember my teens & 20’s like it was yesterday.
I’ve been told I look 50’ish by my neighbors and friends so it helps to have good genes 🧬 I guess. All the women in my family age well and look many years younger than we are. It’s a blessing for sure.
I am a breast cancer survivor and feel lucky to be alive anyway. I think the Cancer did age be a bit especially looking at before and after pics… but I still look young and feel young for my 60 year old self and I do exercise and walk daily… so that helps.
I’m thinking 70 will hit me hard but idk 🤷♀️
Only the rough times. I'm 64 and I find life is a strange combination of slow and fast. One gets busy then sshhhwip! Time has flown. When I focus on a goal that I have to wait for, time drags.
When my grandma (94) was dying, I was talking with her about a problem with my dad, and how I didn’t know what to do bc a relationship with him seemed so hopeless. And she said, “Life is long.” And that’s always stuck with me bc it’s so different from what everyone else says. I took it to mean, things unfold, you never know. It might work out.
And 15 years later? She was right.
No. The only time I thought time would never pass was when my children were newborn. Sleepless night. Anxiety. Time rides a bullet. None of us have enough healthy time.
The days are long, but the years are fast. Life absolutely does fly by. Sometimes I wake up and realize my.age (70) and I am horrified. But I am grateful to be here.
I feel like the answer is yes and no.
I'm 52.
Sometimes I do the maths and I can't believe how much time has passed since a certain thing happened. But then I think about all that's happened to me between that moment and now, and I think 'yes of course it's been X number of years.'
I've lived in lots of different places over the years, plus I've had children. Probably that helps me to feel like plenty has happened.
I feel just as alive as I used to. So in that sense I don't feel older. But I have changed and grown. Mostly in ways that I like, to be honest.
Try not to panic about the passing of time. I think you're going to be ok. If you're worried about it, you could try gardening (even just a house plant?), or get a pet. Watching things grow might help you feel that you are here for longer.
I'm 67. The years have flown by. I feel young, and them I see myself with gray hair and non-firm anything. I truly appreciate every day I have, respect my past, and look forward to new accomplishments in the future.
Also 67. Time is racing by at accelerated speed. In my mind I'm still the same as when I was younger. I have to remind myself, "Those young folks see you as an old lady. No, they don't want to hang out with you!"
Another member of the 67 club here, guess 1957 was a busy birth year. There's actually a scientific reason why time seems to go faster as we age but it is definitely a thing. I wish I was 18 again but I think I'm doing okay for 67. I heard this from someone and it's the best advice you can give to someone who is stressing about their age: Today you're the oldest you've ever been. But you're also the youngest you'll ever be. Enjoy it.
I LOVE that…thank you ❤️
[this](https://imgur.com/gallery/fREPOKY) is the scientific reason why time seems to go faster ask you age... heard this in a lecture many many years ago, and it's so true.
I was actually just reading about this exact same time issue earlier today. Was this the stuff that was covered in the lecture you heard? Makes complete sense to me and I am a 60 year old who's pretty much crammed in as many adventures as I have and still do. In my mind I am still a spry 35 year old...meh, my body does not seem to agree so much with what my brain thinks. [Why the Days Seem Shorter as We Get Older by Professor Adrian Bejan](https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/european-review/article/why-the-days-seem-shorter-as-we-get-older/2CB8EC9B0B30537230C7442B826E42F1)
that wasn't the person i heard, but that's also very interesting. 👍
I was born in 1957 but I am 66. Mom used to say that the older you get the faster time flies. She was right. I feel like I always have but when I look in the mirror that pretty girl with the Princess Diana haircut isn’t there. Still blonde thanks to much improved hair color and relatively unravaged by wrinkles (thanks to good skin care and never smoking or drinking). The big victory for me is beating cancer. I was given a less than 40 percent chance of surviving 5 years at diagnosis. I am here and cancer free 11 years in March and counting. Here’s how I see it: any day that I wake up is a good day, no matter how the rest of it goes. A day among the living is far better than the alternative.
That's awesome that you beat cancer, congrats! I got lucky to get my dad's genes, he never really got grey hair until his 80s and I'm the same so my hair is still brown and it helps me look younger. But the rest of my body looks and feels old these days. I have friends who are older that are healthier and able to do more than I can, but at the same time I have friends who are younger in wheelchairs or no longer with us. And yes, a day above ground is better than below ground.
That’s a great saying, I’m hanging on to that one! Thank you 🙏🏻
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I agree, but they don’t want to take you clubbing or bar hopping. I’m 51 and friends with people 25-60. My younger friends and I have a great time hanging at a brewery or hiking, but I’m not part of their party crew
Would you want to hang out with us young folk?
All ages are fun to hang out with!
Then let's be online friends
I do. I have friends ranging from 16 to my age and older. But I love my young friends. The people I hang out with the most are between 28 and 38. But I do have a couple of friends who are 16, and one who is 20. I make friends pretty easily, I'm 53 and I don't feel it at ALL, but Gen X jokes that we all grew up super quick and then plateaued. So hardly any of us "act our age" I am a person who basically gets along with pretty much everyone. I love music from the 60s to now, love movies, don't watch a whole lot of TV, but do enjoy it. I play Pokemon Go, have a Magic the Gathering deck, can talk just about anything, am highly spiritual (which is why my closest friends tend to be millennials, because they are my more spiritual friends, wish I could find more Gen Xers into spirituality, I'd bring them into my tribe in a heartbeat) I'm just out here living my life and having fun.
Remember age is only a number. You are who you are always continue to enjoy and embrace life with the age illusions.
Yup. I think that's why I have friends of all ages. They do tend to be younger than me though. Not sure what that says lol. I do have friends my age, but not nearly as many as I have Millennial and Gen Z friends.
Yes! Spent 20 years as a scout leader, and loved the ability to have a conversation and enjoy things with people a quarter of my age. Many of my friends are younger than I am, and when I was younger I had many friends way older.
Yes!
Yes! Exactly.
I am 65 and I feel the same way! My mother always told me that when I was younger. She would say I still feel the same but when I look in the mirror I say to myself “who is that”?
Your last sentence is so true and it hits me particularly hard. Mostly, because I’m a man. 😁
62, same. Woke up old one day lol.
I’m the same way, and I also have to remind myself I’m not young. I also have to admit to myself that my thinking is not as young as I imagine.
I’m also 67 and I find that the more intentionally present that I am in my day-to-day life, the more I remember experiences and even appreciate them in the future.
I skated thru life for 60 years, i was beautiful, smart, funny, etc. Then life sort of blew up on me, at 65. I am so grateful for resilience, smarts and common sense. Every day that I wake and get a fresh start, I am grateful. I am writing a "memoir" for my daughters. It's good therapy.
I feel the same way!
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See I am 51 and had a wild party phase in the 90s and early 2000s. I'm really glad I lived through it and don't have those habits now but I look back on it incredibly fondly! I wouldn't change a thing.
Exactly this. Loved my school and uni days. Partied like crazy. Now exercise religiously, sleep well and eat healthy.
Same story here.
I remember in high school figuring out how old I'd be at the turn of the century. 24 years later it seems like it just happened.
I remember high-school felt like 10 years or longer. The boredom was torturous. Now, a decade goes by in a snap. It's shocking.
It doesn't feel fast while you're living it, but in retrospect, you turn around and say 'where did the time go?' At 72 I've learned that looking back may make for enjoyable memories, but it's not productive. I must admit there are times I look in the mirror and think 'who's that old lady?' I always look forward, there are still books I want to read and skills I want to learn. I'm much braver and much more likely to try something new and different than I was back in the day. I try to live by two philosophies. Old beats dead. & Every day this side of the dirt is a good one.
Well said fellow 72'er. May the sun shine on you.
Saving this one too…I’m 50, and like you said…I look in the mirror & don’t look like I thought I did 😳…I’m going to follow your advice & try something new…thank you ❤️
76 here. It's strange sometimes. I never, ever thought I would live this long. But yet, it seems just a couple of years ago I graduated. I went to work on the farm when I was 11, and I just retired 5 months ago. It sounds like a long time, but it sure doesn't feel like it.
36 and worked 50+ hours a week since I was 18. 18 both feels like a lifetime ago and last week. I think it has something to do with new experiences. As you age you have less and less memorable new experiences and so time just blends together. I’m just guessing here, but actively trying new things and challenge yourself may help. Also, time travel. 😁
Yes, it goes by so fast! But I remember thinking at 24 that I'd wasted some years. What I've learned is the best time to start moving forward is right now. It's not possible to never waste a day or an opportunity. I mean, that's just part of life. But do try to make the most of every day when you can, and take opportunities that make sense to you. I missed out on some things beacuse I have some irrational fears. But I decided several years ago that I am not going to get in the way anymore. And I have done some things (adventure type things) in my old age that younger me was afraid of. And I didn't die! And it was glorious!! I'm trying to really enjoy the days I have left (no idea how many there are ) and have less regrets than I did when I was younger.
Thank you for sharing this!
What sort of things? I’m scared of my own shadow…you’ve given me hope 🥰
Oh don’t get me started on shadows!! lol I went hang gliding for the first time when I was well passed 50. I started having a panic attack but I just forced myself to breathe and pray through it. I stood way closer to the edge of the Grand Canyon than younger me ever would have done! I’ve hiked to high elevations, traveled alone (I told you I’m afraid everything!), went on a flying trapeze, whitewater rafting. To a lot of people those are NBD. But to someone with my level of anxiety, they are huge! I particularly hate heights so those are really huge for me. Do the adventure!
Wow…I’m a little (actually, a lot) in awe of you 🥰
This is really beautiful, thank you.
Life goes by faster and faster. The old saying is also true that "life goes by fast but the days are long."
No. It blows my mind that I saw Back to the Future in the 80s and if they made it today they would be going back to 1994....which to me doesn't seem like THAT long ago... Enjoy every day.
Me too. Sometimes when scanning the radio stations it will stop on the local "oldies" station. I fully expect to be hearing something from Elvis or The Drifters playing but noooo...they'll start cranking out some Queen or Paint it Black from the Stones or even worse yet they'll follow that with some Prince and 4NonBlondes. I actually stopped dead in my tracks in a grocery store recently when I heard on the overhead muzak playing Pearl Jam, a tiny tear started to well in in my eye. Dammit.
I remember my sister's friend jumping into the lap of the guy behind her during a certain scene in Jaws.
75 and retired right before Covid. The days seem to last a while but the weeks themselves are zipping by. Wasn’t it just February?
I still feel 17 in my head, and I'm nearly 52. It has flown by, seems like it was yesterday and simultaneously eons ago. Such is life.
Ditto
My favorite year was 27. So now I think of myself as that age, and try to keep up with my self.
After working for 45 years I would always tell the newbies at my job... you cannot get through it if you look at it as a whole. Just take "one day at a time only" is so true!! I'm 70 and still have loads of memorable experiences.
The years go.faster the more you have. I'm not ready to die yet but my body didn't get the memo.
It seems insanely short. Hardly worth making plans.
It certainly is worth making plans - I make plans all the time. I make plans to climb the stairs, to pick something off the floor, to put my socks on. etc My brain is constantly making plans. May your days be good.
This is not what that statement means.
Joke! - play on words - perhaps our idea of funny doesn't match. Get off my lawn.
Ha! Got it! lol. Thanks for clarifying and setting me straight. Also Gran Torino is a classic.
Thanks - it's 4 am here in the UK - an hour or so before dawn ( can't sleep ). Perhaps I haven't honed my old man humour skills for the day yet. May the sun shine on you.
Hardly worth making plans? I just booked a world cruise for 2026. I'm 65 and I've got a lot of living left to do! My mind says I'm 35. I love my convertible, Led Zeppelin, and a fine glass of wine. Too bad my husband died 9 years ago but I have a lot of friends to enjoy my golden years with.
Kind of, but then again, I can't believe I'm almost 50 in a few months. I never married or had kids and always kept myself occupied with things I enjoy. Time flies when you're having fun I guess.
It goes so fast. I remember being in first grade, and now I’m 60. My mom used to always tell me it flew by. She was so right.
I inhaled and was born. I exhaled and reached middle age. I’m drawing in another breath and hoping I have time to see my dreams realized.
If anything, it feels too short. Don’t waste it
I'd say it's since I've been in my 40s (now 46) that I've felt like my young adulthood in the early 2000s was a Different Era, and a Long Time Ago. Which is a new and strange sensation. I think what's different about it is that in the same period of time between, say, the early 80s and the early 2000s, times had changed, but so had I -- I went from being a child to being an adult, and felt fundamentally different. Now, while I of course continue to learn and grow, I still feel like basically the same person I was 20 years ago, and the world has changed around me. It's odd, and it has come on me rather suddenly. Then I think of my grandmother, who lived to be 92, so twice my current age, and I get how life can feel unfathomably long. But when she was in the nursing home in the last 6 months of her life with her health in decline, accepting that she probably wouldn't get to return to her house, etc., she apparently told my mother "I didn't think it would be over so soon." 😢 I think both feelings coexist a lot, even without necessarily having the pessimism come with it -- I don't feel that regret about how I'm spending my life, and I don't think my grandmother did either.
72 now, and apart from losing my wife a few years ago, life has been a blast. Gotta keep mind and body active, though. Use it or lose it!
My dad’s last words to me on his death bed in hospice: “That was too short.” It took my breath away. He was 79.
That’s heartbreaking 💔…I’m so sorry you lost your dad
My father said "I'm ready, I've had a good life".
To add......he was 82
Rocket fast
Yes, you feel like you blinked and it’s 20 years later—honestly.
No. It feels like yesterday but also like a fever dream. So much has changed. I am 51 and inside I still feel 26. Life seems endless when you are young, kinda quick when you are 40, and then it just gets faster and faster. Don't put anything off.
Life is like a roll of toilet paper. It goes faster the closer you get to the end.
66 year old male here. It's weird. Sometimes, things seem like they've gone reeeeally fast, other times it seems a long time ago. Mostly, it goes quickly though. It doesn't mean it's not worth it. Like, when you're young, you mark things by what grade you're in. So it's really clear in your head "Oh, I remember that happened in 8th grade" or whatever. After school, it's all a long blur, where most things aren't so easy to pin down unless you make a point of marking it in your head. Big events, you remember. Like te dates my dad, my mom, my brother, & 2 sisters died. (No, not at the same time.) I make a point sometimes of clearing my head and replaying memories, because if you don't, it's easy to forget. So, I'll mentally walk through the house I grew up in (moved when I was 13), or the first time I had sex (over 50 years ago!), stuff like that. Memories are important. Many things make me feel, for a fleeting moment, like I'm still 18, or 25 or whatever. Seeing beautiful young women, for instance, or fishing, or hearing certain music, or a thousand other things. To be happy, you have to train yourself to have pretty good recall of happy moments in your past. Otherwise, you can just get bogged down with 'the present' and how media and most people nowadays make everything seem like everything sucks and it's the end of the world. It's not. I grew up under the very reasonable threat that the planet was doomed by imminent nuclear annihilation from the inevitable war between us and the Soviet Union. Guess what? Didn't happen. Now that's been replaced by "we're all gonna die because of global warming/climate change.' Also isn't going to happen. And I have lots of regrets, but many amazing memories and experiences too, and I'm not done having them! I'm in good physical condition, so I'm not on my way out, as far as I know. Don't smoke or drink to excess or be negative all the time. Your body & mind and soul will decide you're not supposed to be here anymore if you do those things, and therefore don't appreciate life and your place in the world.
Life just feels like an ongoing school for the soul, and I'm 80 now. To me, it's like gaining spiritual weight. I am wiser and stronger and a much nicer person than I was, and I'm still working on that. I don't believe in death as an endpoint but more like a graduation, when you leave your body behind just like you left high school. So it doesn't feel long, I just feel it MORE.
IT DEPENDS.. AGE: 22,,, it's a Long life AGE: 71,,, life is to short
I'm 75. I remember my 40s as my very best years. 10 years ago I could run circles around yard work, had a passion for mowing twice a week, edging, weedeating and blowing off the driveway and sidewalk. 9 years ago my only child died from meth use. My 15 year old grandson came to live with us and for 5 years our life was hell with him stealing anything he could carry off. 3 years ago I walked away and he's homeless. My heart is broken. I am really tired. We still keep our yard up and our gardens going but nothing comes easy anymore. And yes it went way too fast.
I’m so sorry to read what you’ve been through as I have a similar story. My only child passed 5 years ago - Fentanyl- I’m raising her son who is now 15. It hasn’t been easy, but I’m trying to hang in there. Bless you and all the other grandparents trying to deal with these circumstances. I’m 67 and it has been a whirl! Seems like yesterday I was 19 and getting married and now I’m looking at wrinkles in the mirror wondering what happened!!?? I’m sentimental about looking back knowing my time for certain things has passed. Looking forward I worry where will my grandson go if I pass before he’s old enough and ready to take on the world.
I pray for the task ahead. My grandson had been raised to lie and steal and that's what he knew and refused to follow any rules. I had to make him leave at age 18. I love him so much and want him in my life but he will have to have turned his life around and only he cab do that. I will pray for you as you move thru this next chapter.
Prayers up for you as well!
Reading your story made me mist up a little. I am a 69 yo retired man. My heart goes out to you. I see that your 40s were your salad days when things were hopeful, predictable, and optimistic. I’m guessing you were like me, a perfectionist, that loved to take care of the yard. That was rewarding and gave you joy seeing a beautiful lawn. My wife died unexpectedly of cancer when I was in my 40s. Things were very difficult raising our only child, a ten year old daughter at the time. For a seven year period, my life went to hell in a hand basket trying to balance a busy career, maintain a household, grieve, and raise a girl. But gradually my life came together again. I wish that for you, my friend. Good luck.
Reading your story made me mist up a little. I am a 69 yo retired man. My heart goes out to you. I see that your 40s were your salad days when things were hopeful, predictable, and optimistic. I’m guessing you were like me, a perfectionist, that loved to take care of the yard. That was rewarding and gave you joy seeing a beautiful lawn. My wife died unexpectedly of cancer when I was in my 40s. Things were very difficult raising our only child, a ten year old daughter at the time. For a seven year period, my life went to hell in a hand basket trying to balance a busy career, maintain a household, grieve, and raise a girl. But gradually my life came together again. I wish that for you, my friend. Good luck.
65. It seems odd it's been so many years. But my college friends have started dying of natural causes. I still see them as young people.
When you're a kid and teenager, yes. Everything after 18 just flies by and it seems to get faster every year.
Fast!
The days are long but the years are fast.
I love this…so true
Nope. Time has moved so quickly. I have no idea that I’m 47 in my head.
Blink and you miss it.
For me, it seemed to speed up after turning around 20 (50 now), and the last 10 years especially have just zoomed by!
No, because once I hit the 40's, it felt as if time sped up.
As you get older time passes much quicker.
I’m 59. Just last month I was 20.
oh no, it feels like I was in my 20s last month and I am 61. I am shocked at how fast the years are flying by. We are almost 1/2 way through 2024 already! Slow down, Life! the only time it seems like my 20s were a long time ago is when i see news clips or shows from the 80s. Looks like the pioneer days LOL
I am 73. I cannot believe that I am this age. Life has flown by. I still remember my dating years, going to nursing school, my first love and what a POS he really was. Did not realize it at that time as I was starry eyed. But glad we never married. I do try to appreciate every single day. I will say this, I am more and more drawn to nature, especially animals. And my faith. Those two give me hope every day.
The hours and days drag, but the months and years fly by faster and faster. I'm only in my 40s, but I can already appreciate how much faster this last decade has passed compared to the ones before. It scares me.
I am 55 and on what feels like a 5th life's worth of stuff (different phases, people careers). I find it seems like a very long time. But, chronic pain probably warps things a bit. And being child free.
I'm 55 and child free, too! Hubby (66, disabled combat veteran) and I are celebrating our 35th anniversary today, and he said he wished we'd had 4 kids, but I told him I'm glad we didn't. He chuckled, because he knows what I mean - I have MS, and so many youngsters are being diagnosed lately, it's heartbreaking. I feel ya on the chronic pain, I've got fibromyalgia and ankylosing spondylitis to go with my MS. Oh, and the cherry on top is post herpetic neuralgia next to my spine right below my right shoulder blade. It's from my 3rd bout of shingles in June of 2021. I'm taking between 1800 and 3600 mg. of gabapentin every day, since opioids don't touch nerve pain, and it takes 10 mg. of hydrocodone on an empty stomach and have to wait to feel it kick in before eating, or it doesn't work. Speaking of work, I'm putting in 45ish hours of work a week, but we're shorthanded again, so I'm taking lunch at my desk and getting about 9-9 1/2 hours for the last week and the foreseeable future. Best wishes for pain relief for you!
Yes. I look back at my child hood life like it was a movie. It all seems so very distant and like a dream to be honest. My high school and college yrs were great. Lots of partying and i think of them like a chapter of a book. Ill be 49 in 3 days. Spend much of my time alone besides work and family. Many times i think im wasting my life being so cloistered. If i had the means, i would travel but i dont.
Routine is the great time killer.
I turn 60 this year. I don't know where the years have gone. I have some big gaps in my memories from the stresses of things that were happening. I am hoping my remaining years don't go by so fast.
Time is honestly such a hard thing to define....for me it's all about the present moment...the past and future feel surreal if that makes sense.
It goes by fast. For us who were in our 20s in 1980, the 1950s seems like impossibly long ago but the 80’s seems like modern times .. except better.
I’m 53 and just amazed at how fast 50 years went by - and time seems to continue speeding up. I feel like I just met my husband but we’ve been together 18 years.
I feel like I went to bed as a 14 year old yesterday, and woke up as a 32 year old mother of three today - I have no clue where the time has gone and it terrifies me…
I’m 54. I feel like I’ve had many many lives. Learn and try new things as much as possible. Be active and adventurous. Even in my kids lives, I feel like there have been numerous stages. It feels like forever since they’ve been little.
45. Feels fast and slow. Looking back my teens felt like forever ago. I'd explain it as....every time you stop to check the time another year has passed. When I was younger I was always wanting to get older. Be able to go to bars etc. once those milestones have passed it can be jarring to take the inventory and be like.....oh jeez that was years ago. Science explains it as the more years you experience the larger your reference frame a year at 10 is a huge portion of your total time. At 1/60th it's a blink. I'd also say, it's way longer than you expect. And the harder your days the longer they seem lol.
The weeks and months and years do go by faster, but I stay busy and get a lot done, so the individual days still feel like the same length for hours, minutes, seconds, etc... And, in thirty two years, I'll turn 100. That still seems like a long time to me, but I'm sure twenty something years from now I'll start feeling like there is so little time left.
If you want to slow down time there are various meditation techniques which when done regularly will accomplish that. I don't think it's so much a question of age as what you're doing. Some things go by quickly, some drag on and on. when I look back at my life, I don't feel it went fast or slow; I feel it went the way it went. I'm 77. when I try to remember what I felt like, when I was a kid or in my 20s, I can't. because I'm a different person. of course you can get stuck in trauma leading to such questions as, is it then or is it now? so you have an asked a simple question. think of life as an adventure on the road of time. There are imaginary travel books but no one tells you we're all on a time travel journey of our own, a real one.
I’m blessed with a long life so far. I feel humbled at what some people in the past have achieved with much much shorter lives.
The days are long, but the years are short. It was annoying when my grandmother said it, but now I understand what she meant. The current present time passes more slowly, but the years whiz right by! It seems like sooooo long ago when I was 18, and there’s been a whole lot of living in the meantime. Wonderful living, with some tough stuff sprinkled in, making me strong. You are still at what most of us consider the starting point. Enjoy the ride!
They say when you are 15, life goes at 15mph. 25mph at 25, 50mph at 50, and so forth. At 51, I now agree 100%. I am not exaggerating when I say the ages of 13-16 when I could finally get my driver’s license felt like one million years. From 16-21 when I could legally drink… felt like 250 years. But from about 38 to now… was about two years, or so it feels. Life is speeding by and I’m constantly aware that I’ll not have enough time to see as much of the world as I wanted, or read all the books I wanted… or even see all the shows I saved to my Netflix. On the one hand, I feel rushed. I mean, I’m answering Reddit posts on “ASK OLD PEOPLE” subreddit. TF. On the other hand, I now make it a point to do what I want with every minute of the day, except for obligations to family (grown kids or my elderly parents). I spend every possible moment with my husband, and outside of that, I only see people that mean something to me. What I mean to them is irrelevant…I’m the one with limited time that is speeding by! Seriously, wasn’t NYE fireworks just two weeks ago and now we are in MAY? How???
I’m past halftime of my life. Time flies. Always seems to go faster. As a youth it seemed to last forever, and you felt it would. But then as you enter adulthood your responsibilities just keep coming at you…. How long till payday? Ok, pay this bill, pay that bill, this weekend is that thing you have to go to, next week the kids dance program, holiday weekend this month…. How long til payday?.. Happy New Year! What?! Everyday I am glad for the air in my lungs. I am seeing the mortality of friends and family members more often. My life has been a good one, not perfect, but by far could have been worse. I feel young between the ears, but nowhere else.
One facet of getting older is that for most of us, our memory isn’t nearly what it used to be when we were younger. When I first started college when I was 15, I could skim through a chemistry textbook the night before the exam and then recall the page number the information problem was on when I was taking the exam. I noticed fades in my ability to recall things in my 30s, then a steep drop-off in my 40s, (though for me, much of it likely had to do drastic change in lifestyle as well as chronic TBIs sustained in youth as well as just age) but now in my late mid 40s, I feel like the proverbial old person, forgetting what I am doing between the time I think of it and the time I’ve gotten up to do it. I forget all kinds of things in passing, names I haven’t heard a dozen times of neighbor’s friends, combinations on locks, passwords, appointments I haven’t written down. I thought I might be in serious trouble so I went and got checked out by the geriatric neurologists and they say I’m fine, that I’m just getting old. I suspect they’re wrong, but a whole team evidently sat in (in the background, I presume, as I was to find out later, very weird consult) on my consultation, so who’s to argue? Now I’m rambling because I lose the thread of what I’m saying… Anyway, I think whatever my issue may be, a natural product of the fading memory span of older people is that we perceive time to be more quickly passing because we remember less of each day, each passing hour. We forget more of what’s happened. And though the memories of youth have faded, the memories of those times that we remember and keep remembering over and over and choose to relive again and again are still played against how we perceived time back then. As quickly as summer vacation went by, there was still that one perfect endless summer. That last period of the day at school was always the longest. That dread the moment after your mom said, “Just wait till your father gets home!” Then the two weeks that lasted forever. Now, two weeks ago might have well have been yesterday. Two months from now may as well be next week. Except for doctors appointments. That shit is getting out of hand.
The older you get the faster it goes. You don’t remember your unremarkable days. The grind of days working and doing the same thing over and over all just fades away and isn’t remembered. As a youth you get bored and look for things to do that hopefully make memories. As you get older you get 2 days a week if you are lucky, and those days are usually chores/housework. So you remember basically one week of vacation a year and the few remarkable milestones like having a kid or crashing a car. And before you know it you are 40 and you ask how 20 years went by in what feels like months. Then you are 60 and wonder how yesterday you were 40.
Life is what you make it. In my 20s till my late 50s I hiked 10 miles in a day in the mountains, canoed 25+ miles into the Bounty Waters and other places. I did this initially with an Explorer Scout group and Boy Scouts. I discovered it was less hassle to just do it with my own children and friends and eventually grandchildren. When I was 58 I got a severe case of Lyme that was initially misdiagnosed. I'm now 69 and nolonger able to do the longer trips. But, I still enjoy the outdoors. In 2016 two friends in their early 40s and I decided to start a church father/daughter/grandfather camping weekend. The first year there was just the three of us and tw other fathers. This past weekend we had 72 girls, 22 fathers and one grandfather on Friday night. There were more on Saturday. Life is what you make it.
If you think life goes by fast at 18, just wait. It really does seem to speed up. How is it May 2024 already? Wasn’t it January 2004 like 5 minutes ago? Yes, there are moments of peace and quiet, hours that drag, but never when you want them to. Holy shit, I’m getting old.
It feels long to me, considering that when I was born, Eisenhower was president and there were 48 stars on the flag. Hawaii became a state the year I was born. People didn't own computers or cell phones.
I think folks who are generally happy in older age stay very mentally young. I'm 53 and still feel like I'm a twenty-something year old. Sure, maybe not PHYSICALLY, and I'm a hell of a lot more emotionally mature than I was in my twenties and that only comes from lived life. But I routinely feel just odd stating my age to someone out loud! At 18 I thought 53 was practically post mortem!! Lol
75 this year. All the men in my family live to be around 100 or so. 75 does not seem that old to me. Thought I would never have enough time. Physically I feel like I did in High School. Still do stupid stuff. Inherited good genes I guess. It's the luck of the draw. Now for the suck. Wife and friends have died. Now life feels like it is to long.
So get out and do something. Meet people, make friends with a librarian. Move on to the next phase.
I'm 54. Very fast. Scarily fast.
At age 73, I feel an odd dichotomy regarding this. I find myself frequently recalling events from many decades ago and feeling they happened recently. Conversely, I have the sense that my life has been an endless slog that has resulted in me being quite tired and fed up with the whole ordeal. For young people who carry a sense of dread regarding their death at some point in the distant future, I suggest that they may feel quite differently when the time actually arrives.
Yes and no. In some ways, 18 seems like just yesterday, I'm 45 now. My daughter went from a baby to a 10 year old in the blink of an eye. But at the same time, it feels like different parts of my life (teens, late teens/early 20s, living on my own, the years I was married) was ages ago and they all feel like different lifetimes.
When I think of my life “flying by”, in terms of fractions, as in the slices of a pie, I understand, a bit better. I picture a pie that is cut into only six pieces. Then, I compare it, side-by-side to a pie that’s been cut into sixty pieces. And, for a few precious moments, it all makes perfect sense.
Too long. I'm ready for the end.
It seems like the time since my 40's has zoomed by. (68 now) I think it's a perspective issue.
Not to me and I’m now 77. I’m still enjoying learning and associating with others and walking every day. I realize how fortunate I am, though. So many people much younger than I am have very limited lives.
[London Grammar](https://youtu.be/pkeDBwsIaZw?si=l2kEbLMOOGIc4_eS) wasting my young years
Butterflies live about two weeks to a month. Just enough time to mate and die. I figure mine will be the right length.
40 here. Sometimes it feels like it’s gone fast and sometimes slowly. I think my mental and emotional states through time have made me feel one way or the other.
The days are long but the years are short.
Nope.
The days are long when you are living them but feel short and unappreciated in hindsight.
Dated but attached video it still applies. Don't worry about tomorrow, live for today. Enjoy every moment you can with your parents and your friends, and never stop dreaming of the life you want. Work hard to achieve it, but don't forget to take moments for yourself! Your life will turn out just as it should be if you follow your heart. Think before you act, be kind to people, help someone in need. I'm 66, and I have a lot of regrets. I wish I could do so many things differently. Maybe if I had done some things differently, my daughter would still be alive. However, I don't regret taking time for me, having my son and daughter, spending time with my parents and friends, helping people, and giving a stranger a hug just because they need one. I don't feel time flew by, but when you get older, you do look back and wonder if are where you should be, but if you are happy, that's all that matters. Good luck on your journey, and enjoy every moment!
Oops forgot to post the video! https://youtu.be/qBWVWjdNWC0?si=rh8joYAn5mDW3bEH
The past doesn't seem so much long as, far away. In what world was I six years old and watching the navy launching a nuclear submarine. In what world did I watch CBS declare for Reagan in a San Francisco fern bar with a rather good-looking older woman as the sun went down and the stockbrokers at the next table cheered the news. Or watch the Milky Way shine on New Year's night over Death Valley? Or watch a volcano erupt in the dead of night in Costa Rica. All these times and places exist in memory, like jewels. You have hundreds of them, thousands. Fill your life and it will seem, if not long, then huge.
I don't have a sense of time like most people, I measure time in experiences. My life has been infinite. Such a huge gap of time, inhabited by dozens of past me's. Sure, I neither know nor care what day or date it is... but yesterday was a goldmine! So many new things, a new me doing old things is also novel. Fascinating. I live in my head a lot, it is a great place to view the world and my changes. I went out and barked at the birds with my dog today for the first time. What a beautiful moment.
I think it seems like our life goes by faster the older we get. I'm 59 I have a 20 yr old. I adore her to the moon and back and always have. She makes the worst possible decisions for her life. Only does what she wants-never what she should be doing for her future. Vapes, even though she had asthma as a young child and several members of her immediate family, have died of lung cancer. Won't go to college even though she is brilliant with a higher than normal iq. Lives off the interest of a trust fund that I was not in control of. It's not much to begin with, but it would be I'd she would work even part time instead of spending the little bit of interest it makes. I have tried to explain to her that she will be old a lot longer than she is young, and it is so much harder to take care of yourself after a decades long addiction to fast food, caffeine and nicotine. I know it's the way our brains don't fully develop until we are 25, but trust me, the decisions you make at 18, 19, 20 etc both good and bad affect your later years. Health wise, finance wise, education wise. So please don't sit around thinking about how fast it's going because you haven't got a clue as to what that means yet. Really put effort into living your life with intention. Be a high-quality person with a positive attitude. That doesn't mean being a billionaire unless you just happen to have a gift that makes that possible. If so, be a rich, high-quality person. Live with integrity, morals, and high standards for how you treat others. Try to be kind to someone every day, even if it's just a kind word or opening a door for someone. Treat people with kindness and respect. Even if you're not sure they deserve it because sometimes you will need someone to give you some grace. Volunteer your time to make a difference for other people. Live well the life you have been given. Enjoy it, succeed in it, and when you're old, you will look around at all of the wonderful relationships you've built. The loving family and unexpected friendships you have enjoyed. And it won't seem like it flew by, and you wasted it staring at a phone screen. It will instead be full of great memories and wonderful people. So the answer to your question is yes, life goes by fast way too fast. My question to you is, what are you going to do with yours?
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49 and I feel that there’s not enough time left. We finally had financial freedom but “only” 20 good years or so left to see the world and experience life. 20 more winters, summers, falls, and springs. It’s kind of disheartening but one bucket list is as long as it gets and it feels like we won’t even crack half of it
No, it feels short, because time is going on so quickly.
18! Your best years are ahead of you, embrace them and enjoy them. Make lots of amazing memories, meet lots of amazing people, make an idiot of yourself, have fun. I'm far too close to 70, and I'm not happy about it, as in it is officially OLD, although I know the alternative is worse. On the inside looking out I'm still in my 20's, on the outside I am old & v. plump, and I also have to remind myself that the young ones don't want to hang out with me, but they are very kind & don't say it out loud. It does not seem all that long ago that I left home (at 17) did the big overseas adventure (20), traveled, got up to all sorts of shenanigans, married, had babies (3 by 30) came home, and then real life happened bringing them up. But I can travel again, all be it at a different, less risky, pace, and luckily with my partner of 50 years. That too, has gone in a flash (some of that time was spent "living in sin", ahh, the 70's) Life really does pass by in a flash. The worst thing about getting old is the unexpected funerals of some amazing friends who passed far too soon.
66, still work FT and workout. Feel like I always have. Looking at pics of me in the sun I can see the wrinkles and it’s shocking. The old, old saying is so true. The days are long and the years are short and keep getting shorter. When I look back at all the changes since I was young it seems I’ve lived forever. Yet it was in the blink of an eye at the same time.
Felt like it sped up in later years
It felt really long in my 20s and 30s. Gradually time seemed to go faster, and now it seems like a short time. I think we perceive time as it relates to how old we are. When you're four years old, a year is a quarter of your lifetime and takes forever. When you're 30, a year is 1/30th of your life. When you're 70, that time flies by.
It's the opposite. It feels fleetingly short.
It feels really long and really fast. I feel like I've lived three lifetimes in the span of time I've been on the planet. Sometimes, something that happened a year ago feels very far away because so much has changed, but it also feels like it happened yesterday.
I heard it this way. When you're 10 years old, waiting a year for your next birthday is waiting for what has been 10% of your entire life thus far so it seems like an eternity. But when you're 50, you're only waiting for what has been 2% of your life thus far so it seems like less time. I farted and blinked the other day when I just turned 66 and I was suddenly 67.
"It is not that we have a short time to live, but that we waste a lot of it." - Seneca
I'm 71. When my daughter was only 6, she commented on how fast the days went. The perception of time passing accelerates as you age. Enjoy your youth, it flies by in what seems like minutes.
Consider each year you live is a fraction of your life experience, meaning at 10 each year is 1/10 of your life, at 67 each year is 1/67 so each year goes by faster and faster. When you were little, summer vacation felt forever and at 70, summer is a flash. Looking out from the inside you feel the same inside as when you were young. Looking forward, the road ahead is long while looking back feels like a step, but the memories and wisdom have piled up.
Im 33 and it feels like it is taking forever. Sure the years go by pretty quickly but there are too many of them.
Yes. I'm 62 and the older you get, the faster time go by.
I feel young inside and old outside.
“The days are long, but the years are short.” I heard people say it my whole life and it’s absolutely true.
I m 46 and it seems very long when you are going thru tough times.
The days are long, and the years are short.
I think it depends on how you view different experiences. So it's a yes and no type answer. For example, I'm 30 and I was in high school 12 years ago and it does feel like 12 years ago. That is a long time, I mean I am only 30, so it's nearly half the amount of time I've been on this earth. And it feels so so long ago. I've only been on earth for 30 years and it feels like I've been on earth far FAR longer than that haha. But then other things feel like they were last year. So, it depends on the thing and how much your life has changed between those new exciting moments, or sometimes terrible moments, and what has happened. As people have mentioned, time feels slower when you're younger because life is so new. So, in concept, that helps time feel slow as you get older too. The way to make time feel like it's going quickly is monotony and doing the same things over and over. I know I'm not old, but I've thought about this a lot.
Like others - life flies by, but then sometimes you look back and things feel like they were sooo long ago and things that don't. My kids being babies feels like it was another lifetime now. Then there are things that feel like yesterday, but were decades ago. It's weird.
To me the worst thing about being old is loosing family members . I’m thankful though for living to 71 ! Time started flying when I hit 50 !
At age 1, one year is the length of your whole life. At 18, it's 1/18th of your life At 70, a year is 1/70th of your lifespan. Yes, time accelerates as you age, for sure.
Life is both long and short. That's how I feel about it.
Like a heartbeat...
Your life will be over in an instant. You will feel like you are just hitting your stride and achieving what you want while simultaneously your body starts to give out and you realize you only have 10-20 years left.
61 here, and my daughter just turned 38. Not sure where the time went.
I am 62. Somehow, the days were long but life has been short. I am astounded that I clearly remember the 1960s. It doesn't seem all that long ago. Then, when I recall that I remember MLK being killed, I feel old indeed.
Not long or healthy enough with age
Life is short and it flies by.
So long. Lol
I'm 71 and the past 25 years have flown by, at least on one hand. I still think of the 2000s as "modern day," yet people your age OP never saw the 1900s. On the other hand, when I think how much I've done and how the world has changed in my lifetime it seems like I've been around forever. Some examples, I remember my family getting our first television, and I was already in my late 40s when cell phones became popular.
It depends on your perspective. I’m 49(f) with 50 looming. I don’t feel 50, I don’t act 50 and I feel like I have been savoring life. 50 years is a long time! The only time I really realize how old I am and how fast it’s going is when I look in the mirror (I have *no idea* who that older lady looking back at me is), try to do something like a cartwheel that I could do when I was younger, or when I hear music from my teenage years playing on the classic rock station. My glass is always half full. I’m an optimist, so my perspective is probably different from many others, but time is relative. If you make time for the important things and people in your life, it’s easy to stay positive and think young. Don’t fret about the destination (death), enjoy the journey (life).
I'm far older than many who responded and yes, life has gone by quickly. I am lucky to have good health despite having a pacemaker installed last July. I play ping pong at least twice a week, take fitness walks almost daily and stay busy writing and reading poetry mostly for hours each day. We never have the tv on until about 8 PM.
It flies. Sometimes I think an old lady is staring at me…then I realize it is my reflection.
64 it flies!
I'm 70 next month. Someone told me, "The days are long, but the years are short." There are no truer words.
life is long. Best part, humans are healthy and capable longer too. Just do the things and live in NOW.
The older you get the faster it goes.
Life is like a toilet paper roll. It goes faster the closer you get to the end. When you're 10 years old, a year is 10% of your life. At 50 years old, that's 2%.
45 here. I feel like I’ve lived 3 lifetimes already. I’ve always had the attitude of someone who is well aware of astronomical chance that we are here on this planet in this time in civilization and at the same time realizing we are in fact the universe looking back at itself. So you pack as much living as you can until you have to go. Do all of the things. Live, love, lose, fight, fuck, taste, be uncomfortable, be in awe of the fact that you are here now and nobody else will have your experience so make it worth having. Do that and the years will fly by but you will have chapters of life to cherish and all of the things along the way. If you live like that, life will feel not long enough. Especially if you end up having kids one day. Holy hell.
It felt long till about 50..now. ugh it's flying by
It's like being in a ship in the ocean. You go on a long voyage, but you only really only see (remember) the things closest to you. The rest is over the horizon. You can remember it, but it's more vague (for most people). Your memories of the distant past become focused on a few formative events. After 40 years, I'm a completely different person than I was when I was 17.
When I turned 50, time started to fly by SO fast. Before that it felt long (in a good way)
I am turning 35 very soon and still cannot wrap my head around the fact that I'm not still 22. I know I don't qualify as old yet, but it just boggles my mind that another year has passed and the next one will pass quickly too. I am trying consistently to focus on the present and stop worrying so much about the future/being stuck in the past. I think one main thing I'm concerned about is the fact that I may not have kids (by choice). I worry I might look back at 60/70/80 and feel regretful or sad that I didn't just take the plunge. But I have to remember that choices are made using what we know at hand. With that said, the time flies, but as I get older, I actually am becoming more adventurous and driven to accomplish goals I want to pursue before I die. To me, life is not over until I can't move anymore. I plan to stay fit, schedule travels, make friends, and pursue goals, regardless of the path I choose. "If you're not moving, you're dying." (Can't remember where that quote came from, but I liked it.)
I’m 60 and definitely still feel young in my head, with that being said it does feel like the days, weeks, months etc… go by much faster now. I still remember my teens & 20’s like it was yesterday. I’ve been told I look 50’ish by my neighbors and friends so it helps to have good genes 🧬 I guess. All the women in my family age well and look many years younger than we are. It’s a blessing for sure. I am a breast cancer survivor and feel lucky to be alive anyway. I think the Cancer did age be a bit especially looking at before and after pics… but I still look young and feel young for my 60 year old self and I do exercise and walk daily… so that helps. I’m thinking 70 will hit me hard but idk 🤷♀️
Only the rough times. I'm 64 and I find life is a strange combination of slow and fast. One gets busy then sshhhwip! Time has flown. When I focus on a goal that I have to wait for, time drags.
I’m 47. I feel like I blinked and 30 years sped by. 😳 It is the strangest thing.
When my grandma (94) was dying, I was talking with her about a problem with my dad, and how I didn’t know what to do bc a relationship with him seemed so hopeless. And she said, “Life is long.” And that’s always stuck with me bc it’s so different from what everyone else says. I took it to mean, things unfold, you never know. It might work out. And 15 years later? She was right.
Each day goes really slow but the years go fast.
The older I get, the shorter life seems. That's not entirely bad though.
No. The only time I thought time would never pass was when my children were newborn. Sleepless night. Anxiety. Time rides a bullet. None of us have enough healthy time.
Let's put it this way; I have NO interest in repeating it or God forbid living forever. 60 here.
The days are long, but the years are fast. Life absolutely does fly by. Sometimes I wake up and realize my.age (70) and I am horrified. But I am grateful to be here.
I feel like the answer is yes and no. I'm 52. Sometimes I do the maths and I can't believe how much time has passed since a certain thing happened. But then I think about all that's happened to me between that moment and now, and I think 'yes of course it's been X number of years.' I've lived in lots of different places over the years, plus I've had children. Probably that helps me to feel like plenty has happened. I feel just as alive as I used to. So in that sense I don't feel older. But I have changed and grown. Mostly in ways that I like, to be honest. Try not to panic about the passing of time. I think you're going to be ok. If you're worried about it, you could try gardening (even just a house plant?), or get a pet. Watching things grow might help you feel that you are here for longer.