Birthdays

Every Sunday I enjoy waking up and watching the CBS channel and the Sunday morning show.  One of the pieces today was an interview with Tom Petty of the Heartbreaker fame.  He was humorous through self-deprication.  The interviewer commented that he had a big birthday coming up and his reply was- yes he was turning 60 and that it's not a problem because if you're not getting older-you're dead.  So true.  I have never had a problem with the anniversary of the day of my birth.  It's My Day.  I get irked when I find someone who has the same birthday.  I don't want to share it, I want it to be all mine!  And then I remember how old I am. 
My cousin died yesterday.  He was only 64.  (As a teen, that age seems old.  As a 40 year-old you realize retiremet should be right around the corner).  In his youth he had served in the Army.  As an adult, he was a firefighter.  He also smoked.  A lot.  He quit, late in life, but the effects of a lifetime of inhaling tar were too great to overcome. When he should have been enjoying a period of time devoid of stress he couldn't breathe.  He boxed in the Army.  He was in great physical shape when he was a firefighter.  Towards the end of his life he couldn't walk a hundred yards without stopping to catch his breath.  The day after Thanksgiving he finally admitted he didn't feel well and went to the hospital.  He had developed pneumonia and the doctors found his lungs were bleeding, a symptom they could not reverse.  He left behind a wife, a brother, a sister-in-law, an uncle, an aunt,  daughters, couins, a niece, a great-niece, step-children, grandchildren and a great-grandchild who will miss him dearly. 
We all have habits that can ultimately affect the length of our life.  Take stock.  Birthdays will come, until they don't.