Nothing To Fear But Death Itself?

Even if we are all born into a losing struggle, as Christopher Hitchens used to say about death, we can still win along the way.

Nothing makes me feel my age – and its associated aches, pains, and groaning bones – like spending time with my nieces and nephews. Whenever I visit my best friends and their twin six-year-olds, I become a human jungle-gym as the kids climb, pull, and swing from my arms, legs, and increasingly pained back. I don’t mind, and I don’t tell them to stop (usually), because I have fond memories of being their age and wrestling with my dad or being picked up on one of his seemingly indefatigable arms. With the twins, I gain newfound sympathy for how exhausted my father must have been. After ten minutes of such play, I need to sleep for the whole afternoon. As I said, nothing makes you feel old like spending time with young children.

Another wonderful way of experiencing your own decline is celebrating the birthdays of children you’ve watched growing up. The passage of a familiar child into their teen years is particularly sobering. With each year marked by a niece or nephew’s birthday, I beco…