50 Means Not Having to Color Within the Lines Anymore

At 7:30 a.m., both kids were still asleep. Mike and I got dressed and took a leisurely walk along the grounds of the Turtle Bay resort. He slipped into his flip flops while I laced up my tennis shoes. Half an hour in, he noticed that the little rubber post separating his big toe from the other four toes was beginning to irritate his foot. Mike said that his foot was irritable which launched us into a discussion about the difference between "being irritable," "being irritated," and "being irritating."

"The little post is irritating your foot. Your foot is irritated which makes you irritable," I explained.

I realized at that point that as we get older, we get more creative with our language. We see the relationships between different words, find new ways to use old words. We make connections between people--introduce kindred spirits to one another. We become more flexible.

For a girl whose idea of the perfect gift was a new 64-crayon box of crayolas, this was a very freeing concept! I realized that I spent the first 50 years of my life compliantly coloring within the lines; living by the rules; doing whatever was asked of me. Now I realize that I can step out and explore my creativity, fearlessly. I don't have to color within the lines anymore!! I don't even have to use crayola crayons!