[Accumulator]

Originally Posted by the other pc

..I’ve also seen guys that could have started to enjoy it in their forties or earlier but got so wrapped up in working on it they blew right past it and somewhere down the line found themselves looking back wondering “what the hell happened?”

That's one of the things I thought about when I decided to retire early. And I didn't want to be one of those people who "aren't more than their job", much as I did love the teaching.

Originally Posted by snowskate

My athleticism won't last forever, and although I'm still not at the top of my game, I appreciate it in the present moment. When the time comes for my skills to degrade, hopefully, I've gave it my best shot and can accept a slow regression in abilities.

You might be surprised. I'm still improving at age 48, and it's not like I was in bad shape before. My father was still doing cardio and freeweights in his mid-80s (and he was helping me detail his cars at that age too ).

Originally Posted by Holden_C04

... I can remember in high school feeling much older than I was. ... Now, I would say that the roles have reversed and I feel much younger than I actually am.

I too felt older when I was young and now feel younger now that I'm, well, not-young. Works well for me

I suppose there's a definite conflict between my ambition, my sense of accomplishment, my need to provide for myself, and my desire to simply have fun.

IMO inner conflict/cognitive dissonance isn't good, I'd rather have all those things working in concert, enhancing and reinforcing each other. Sometimes it's just a matter of perspective, other times you're holding on to contradictions that need sorted out.

Originally Posted by muttgrunt

i know it's something i thought a lot about while spending 15 months in afghanistan as a us army infantry fire team leader. how i wanted to do so much if i was blessed enough to return to my home country. now that i'm back and out, i'm trying to take advantage of all life has to offer. i might only be 23, but i feel much older and wiser (though that might not always be good) than my peers

Glad you made it back OK (and thanks for your service). After your time on the two-way range I bet you really *ARE* a whole lot older and wiser than your peers (and a lot of "old, wise" people too). And IMO, at your age of 23, a lot of that *is* good.