Own Your Age

     Own your age. It's becoming a popular phrase, for fitness centers, nutrition centers, etc. AARP has a new campaign called Disrupt Aging. I first read about Own Your Age from a speech I found by the AARP CEO, Jo Ann Jenkins, at an aging well conference.
         It spoke to me. As Ms. Jenkins said, “I’m not talking about just accepting your age. I mean really own it— embrace it—feel good about where you are in life—and more importantly, about where you are going.”* I've talked before about not retiring just because you've turned 65, deciding to continue and never stop like Gloria Steinem, making goals and achieving them a little at a time, and living with positive attitudes. Now we have a name for all that, own your age.
         As we embrace everything that it means to own your age, we practice the process of positive aging. It is a process, to see that it's okay to feel good about your age, not hide it, not give into the negativity of ageism, but keep going. Take your wisdom, your years of experience,  and use it well to benefit yourself and those around you.
          The concept of owning your age is really far reaching, embrace it, feel good about it, really take your age and don't let it hold you back from doing what's best for your and your family. Just like you own a car, own a house, own a smartphone, go ahead and own your age!

*Own Your Age. Address by Jo Ann Jenkins. Delivered at AARP’s Life @50+ National Event & Expo, Miami, Fla. May 15, 2015. Vital Speeches of the Day.