Oh, Honestly!

Real Life for Real Moms

I Asked, You Answered: The Moment You Knew You Were Old

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There comes a time in every person’s life when they realize they aren’t as young as they used to be.

Moment you knew you were old

The Moment You Knew You Were Old

I don’t know about you, but I feel like I stopped growing when I was in my early twenties. My rational mind knows that I’ve gotten older with each passing year, but my typical frame of mind is that I’m not that much older than those high school and college students I see around.

There have been a few wake-up calls, however. Like when I saw a kid, who I was sure was in elementary school, hop behind the wheel of a car and drive away.

Or the day I found out a girl from the very first class I taught (fifth grade) was getting married.

This week I asked the question to my newsletter subscribers:

What was the moment you knew you were old?

The responses, as you’d imagine, were great:

“The moment I knew I was old was when I spoke and heard my mother come out of my mouth!” -Jackie B.

“Last night after a deep conversation about gangsta rap with a coworker’s husband, I made the mistake of asking if he remembered when Tupac died, to which he replied ‘Nope, I was born in 1988.’ ‪#‎whendidigetold‬ “ -Nikki S.

“My moment was this past summer. I work at a car rental counter and our competition had hired a 21 year old, fresh out of college. When he told me his age, I immediately thought, ‘Crap, I could be his mother.’ I’m 39, but that really hit me.” -Emily M.

“Though I’ve been living in the realm of thirty for a handful of years, I’ve never actual felt old…until I found my first gray hair.” -Kristen H. in her blog post Those Aren’t Gray Hairs… They’re Strands of Shimmer

And my personal favorite:

“The moment I felt old was when guys (men) started to check out my 17 year old daughter (instead of me)! If a guy turns his head to me these days they are always 10 years older than I am. Well, I think they are older, haha. I am 47, but sometimes forget all about that ;)” -Barbara A.

What was your moment? Tell me in the comments below.

[Tweet “What was YOUR moment? #whendidigetold @Oh_Honestly_LC”]

Want in on the fun? Subscribe to my newsletter to receive the weekly question. Then send me your answer and it may be featured in a blog post!

About Lauren

If you enjoy picture-perfect home decor, perfectly prepared recipes, and perfectly behaved children, you've come to the wrong place. Meet Lauren. She isn't perfect, but she's perfectly real.

Comments

  1. Anne Marie says

    HA! The moment I seemed to be scared or worried about everything! I don’t know what happened to me!! I used to just live life, but now I am worried that I’m not a good enough wife and mom. I am worried that my 3yo dictator will never be potty trained (Attempt number 3 right now!) Bugs…I scream and cry and can’t sleep until I know all bugs are dead. I am just terrified that I will never be as awesome as my mom was!

    Ugh…I sound like a basketcase…I swear I’m not!

    • Lauren says

      No, you sound like you’ve come to the right place! I’ve felt ALL those things and write about them regularly. You’re not a basket case; you’re normal!
      PS Potty training totally sucks. I feel your pain!

  2. Echo says

    Hahaha, the Tupac one. That would totally be me. I feel old when my son refers to my birth as taking place in the 1900’s.

  3. Janine Huldie says

    I actually was in the process about writing about this as I recently stumbled upon what Joey Lawrence from the show Blossom looks like now and that was the moment here that it finally hit home that I am just old now, but these are truly things that if I hadn’t would have done it for me, too, especially Tupac!

    • Lauren says

      Now I’m going to have to look up pictures of Joey Lawrence! I bet that would do it for me too. Occasionally I’ll see an actor I haven’t seen in a while and think, “Wow, he got old.” Well, I haven’t exactly stayed the same age… yikes!

  4. Creative Mama Renee says

    It makes me feel old when I reference something from my childhood when talking to my teenage (step)kids and they look at me blank faced, the same face I probably give my older husband when he talks about his childhood (he’s 11 years older than I am).

  5. Tricia the Good Mama says

    haha I loved the responses. Honestly, it depends on the situation whether or not I feel young or old. I think the key is to surround yourself with plenty of people older than you to make yourself feel young haha. I did feel old when our friends asked us out to dinner at 8:00 and I thought, “wow, that’s late!”

    • Lauren says

      Hahaha, that’s a great idea!! And yeah, I remember the days when making plans at 10 pm was normal. Now anything after 7 is unheard of!

  7. Erlene says

    This post is so funny. Well, I feel old when my youngest daughter says she wants to pluck out all my gray hair and I tell her I would be bald.

  8. Jade @ Jonesin' For Taste says

    I felt old when I went roller skating with our church youth and decided to go out there with them and immediately began to regret it when my back started hurting. After 2 falls I was done! Sore for a week.

  9. becka says

    I was old long before I was old if that makes sense. The moment I really realized I was old was when the twenty somethings at work started to refer to me as mam…

  11. Caryn says

    I know this is more sentimental, but I started to feel old (and nostalgic) once my son was born. It became me looking forward to his next milestones, not my own.

  12. Alex says

    I don’t exactly feel old. Of course I know my biological age, but I don’t have those “Oh damn, I am ancient” moments. Wondering if it has to do with me being around people over 50 a lot. Of course I am young compared to them 😉

    Alex

  13. Carolyn says

    I couldn’t answer this last week when I first read it, I was too emotional. We are a family of 5 generations of women, this is the second time in my life this has been so. My grandmother is failing, she’s 93 and has Alzheimers. I realized the next time we’re 5 generations of women again will be when/if my 5 yr old granddaughter has a baby girl. Though not the first time I felt old, the most recent time. We’ve been blessed to have such longevity in our women. My great grandmother was 96 when she passed, leaving us 4 generations for 15 yrs until my daughter gave birth to her daughter. The next time this happens I will be a GREAT grandmother!!!! Holy Moly!