The trick to aging gracefully is to enjoy it.”
-Unknown
I am a mom who no longer has a day job as I have successfully raised my two kids and sent them merrily out into the great, big, wide world to make their way. While I still am on call 24/7, I am rarely needed and the day is blissfully empty of child-rearing duties. I can now fill these hours with cleaning out the attic, painting the front door, and revitalizing my long-dormant gardens.
I can, but I have a better idea.
I am packing up either my bicycle or my boots and flying off to travel the backroads, trails, and byways of Europe.
I may sound incredibly confident and experienced in the world of long-distance hiking and cycling, but alas, I am not. I have slightly dabbled in both. My one long-distance cycling trip was over 30 years ago when I was blessed with a pre-baby, pre-menopause, and much younger body. Since then, it has been short local rides when I could fit them in while raising a family.
Distance hiking I have done a bit more of if I can call it that, but only a couple of hut-to-hut hikes in the White Mountains of New Hampshire and one guided trip along the Lycian Way in southern Turkey.
What I lack in experience and confidence, I make up for in wanderlust and fear of growing old. If I let myself sit on the couch too long, fall into a routine too easily, grow lazy and complacent, I’ll shrivel up and die. I firmly believe that if I keep moving, hiking, and cycling, I’ll stay fit, healthy, and engaged in life.
I’m determined to age gracefully and have fun while doing it.