Fifty-six

What does being 56 mean to me? First off, I don't know that I truly feel like I'm 56 years old...sounds kind of old.
I've lived my life in stages...some good...some bad..I wonder how many more I will have to live thro?
I've seen a lot of changes in myself this past 3 years, more like the past 6 years since I turned 50.. I think I've gone thro the "change"..it kind of slipped by me...I really haven't had time to take too much notice of it.. I did stop my "periods" about a year ago..wondered at the time if it was from exercising so much...
When I lost most of my weight I noticed I could actually see my pubic hair and that there was alot of gray hair and that it had thinned out so I shaved it all off (I read that thinning hair down there is a sign of the change). I figured this was a way of ignoring it and it looks alot better when I wear a thong...Oh yeah that's a big change for me...I no longer wear "granny panties"...I have a large collection of thongs & sport bikini underwear. I noticed that my boobs sag some so I wear a push up bra, when I'm not wearing my sports bra which smashes everything down anyway..I did go from a size 42D to a 36B cup bra since losing the weight.
I now have wrinkles (laugh lines) around my eyes and still have a bit of a "chicken wattle" under my chin..and don't forget my "bat wings" under my arms...but I'm not letting those things bother me at this time...I figure I'll just blame them on losing so much wieght...I just slather the wrinkle-free creme and tell myself that it isn't that noticable...LOL...I also wear makeup now to draw away the attention to the wrinkles..it makes me feel almost pretty..
My hair is probably pretty gray too but I keep it colored & styled. Thanks to T my hairdresser (no more cutting & dying it myself)...she's even gotten to where she isn't quite so conservative..in fact when I went to her this past weekend she even said that she likes my hair with more pop (bright red streaks)...it took awhile to convince her but she's there with me now..
Being heavy does make a person OLDer than they need to be...at least it did me...I felt old most of the time..I dressed old because there wasn't that much out there to choose from. I have noticed lately that is changing in the stores but altho the style might be changing it still doesn't make you look good in them..take the black gal on American Idol that just got voted off last week...altho her voice was great I cringed at some of her outfits..they made her look even bigger than she was...and she was definately good size...I still worry that I'm dressing too young for my age but most of the time I think I look good...at least I feel good about the way I dress...it's very individual and I like it...especially my 4" heels..they make me feel tall...I probably spend way to much monies on clothing but what the hey...it makes me happy....
I think I'm alot more active than most women my age...not all...I've met a few that can run circle around me ...and I really admire them...I'm convinced that my being active keeps me young...in mind and body...
I've come a long ways in the last three years sooo being 56 is no big deal...no more than being 55...or 53...or 50...