230327 Enjoy Yourself

Thoughts come to me at odd times and they are completely out of the blue.

There’s an old Guy Lombardo song titled “Enjoy Yourself” that I remembered from the refrain in the song. It goes like this:

I first heard the song when I was 28 years old, that’s 50 years ago. It was a funny song to me back then. I thought about it today and now I understand it well. The song is about me and not all, but many of you too.

Enjoy yourself, it’s later than you think. When we are in our twenties, we never think about getting old, even parents don’t seem old.

Enjoy yourself, while you’re still in the pink. We do some crazy, funny things when we are young, as we should. We have a lot of fun.

The years go by, as quickly as a wink. Oh my, that is the kicker! I’m almost 78 years old and the years have gone by as quickly as a wink. I can’t do what I did 30 years ago, or twenty years ago, or 10 years ago, or five years ago. I can’t do what I did two years ago!

I think now, why didn’t I do the fun things I wanted to do back decades ago? I was always focused on my work and afraid to break away and travel the country. Now I wish I had just taken the chance to see all there was to see in this beautiful country. I saw more of the far east during my navy years than I saw in my own country then or now. I’ve written before about my dream of packing up my old 65 Chevy truck and cruising across the country. I didn’t do that then and I am too old to do it alone now. Instead, Joyce and I worked and saved for our old age. We thought we would be set for life and travel as far back as 2000, but inflation cut into that in the years hence. Now she has passed away and I do not feel able mentally or physically able to pack up and go across the country. The paradox is that by the time I bought a truck good and dependable enough for the journey, I wouldn’t have enough cash to make the trip. I wouldn’t dare to try and go in my now 10 year old car. The car is a great puddle jumper for going around town, but not for a several thousand mile trip.

The years have gone by, as quickly as a wink and I’m no longer in the pink. It is later than I think. I still have a good life that could be better, but then we could all say that. Joyce and I did what we thought was the right thing to do. We had a lot of fun, so I can’t complain. Life is a funny thing and we only get one chance at living it. or do we?