On July 11th, I celebrated my 59th birthday. The day passed quietly as I adjusted to facing the end of my fifties and the rapidly approaching “senior years.” When my parents turned sixty I remembered how ancient they seemed to me. My God! It was like having one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel. Naturally, I don’t see things the same way now. Somehow, facing sixty no longer feels like the end of something, but more like the beginning of an entirely new adventure.

There was a time not so very long ago, when a sixty-year-old truly was considered to have entered their “golden years.” The seventh decade ushered in white hair, wrinkles and a general slowing down of activities. Today, most sixty-year-olds squeeze more activity in before lunch than their grandparents did all week.

Sixty can be the beginning of a life no longer dependant on a 9-5 schedule and a burgeoning freedom from the regular work day. Although most people still retire around sixty-five, the transition from the day-to-day business world to a more self-initiated existence starts to set in. It’s a time to explore the different options open for living the many years ahead. You now have the freedom to engage in activities you enjoy, and to focus on what is important to you.

Many people use their senior years as a time to give back to society some of the rewards with which they were blessed. Charitable and philanthropic works become possible on a more meaningful basis. Volunteering and contributing helps enrich society as a whole.

Retirees can devote glorious hours to their families. Hours that were previously spent working, can now be lavished on grandchildren. Spoiling der kinder can now become a full-time occupation, while the bringing-up and disciplining is left up to their parents. Bubbes and zaidies are ALWAYS the good guys.

This all leads up to a marvelous event that Arnold and I will be attending on July 17th, less than a week after my special day. We will be driving down to Seneca Falls, New York to help celebrate Aunty’s 105th birthday. Somehow, everyone feels a lot younger and more alive spending time with this remarkable woman. I have written about her several times in the past, and with good reason. Here is a woman who has truly made her senior years golden.

Last year, the National Women’s Hall of Fame changed the name of their headquarters to the Helen B. Barben building in her honour. She is one of the original founders of this splendid organization, as well as a generous individual supporter. She has helped make college educations possible for many students who otherwise could not have faced the expenses on their own through scholarships named for her herself and her late husband Arnold.

I would need many pages to list all of Aunty’s accomplishments, but what is most important in my opinion, is the fact that at 105, Aunty is still living and giving. She takes an interest in her community and the people who live there. She is sought out for her advice and counsel and revels in spending time with the people she has come to know all these many years. On July 17th a sizable group of admirers, including family and friends will gather around her to wish her well and to thank her for sharing so much of her life with us. And at the end of the speeches and testimonials Aunty will still have one more important question to ask. “Where’s the dessert?”

So as I adjust to my encroaching senior years, I too hope to maintain my sweet tooth for life, and always wonder, when all else seems in order, “Where’s the dessert?”