By Cindy Joseph
I was 43 when I looked in the mirror and was shocked at what I saw. I saw gray hair taking over. I saw my mother. I saw “old.” I saw someone I was not ready to see.
Against my boyfriend’s and my kids’ wishes, I started dying my hair.
Then, five years later, I was talking with a friend about age—how it felt and what it meant. I was 48 at the time and I had been waiting and wondering, along with my peers, when I was going to feel like less.
After all, what I heard throughout my life was that I was going to get worse with age. And there I was, sharing with her that I was feeling better than ever. I was more confident and vivacious than ever before.
I knew I clearly had more to offer the world. I had accumulated so much more experience, knowledge, self awareness, skills, and life savvy that I felt like I was just getting started.
I finally understood that as my life progressed I was adding to who I am. I was becoming more and better as time went by. Society tells us we lose value as we age and I was coming to the realization that we actually gain value as we age.
Silver hair became freedom.
So back to my gray hair. With this new pro-age viewpoint, I saw my gray hair in a whole new way. It was now the physical evidence of a lifetime of accomplishments.