66

Come and hear, all you who fear God;
    let me tell you what he has done for me. Psalm 66:16

Yesterday was my sixty-sixth birthday. I must say it lacked the drama of my sixty-fifth birthday. Number 65 was a big deal. This one, not so much. I got just a handful of “happy birthdays” on Facebook. I was overwhelmed with well-wishers last year. My wife gave me an outfit obviously designed to make me look younger. I haven’t tried it on. I don’t know if I will be able to handle her disappointment if it doesn’t have the desired youth producing effect.  Sixty-six just isn’t as sexy as sixty-five.

I got tons of mail last year as everyone seemed to be trying to sell me a medicare supplement. This year I just got a bill for the supplement.

Last year I was often asked about retirement. This year it was kind of like, who cares. Are you still around?

Trying to find some meaning in the birthday I turned to Google. The only thing significant about the number 66 seems to be old Route 66 which runs from Chicago to Los Angeles. It used to be a road of high adventure, travelled by biker gangs and snow birds trying to escape the brutal Chicago winters. There was once a television series called Route 66, but most of you are too young to remember and too busy to care.  Age 66, seems to have none of the adventure or romance of the famous highway, too bad.

I turned to scripture and looked at Psalm 66. It’s pretty upbeat. I guess it is summarized in verse 16. “Let me tell you what he has done for me.” He’s done a lot. It’s been an awesome 66 years full of love and family and blessings, lots of chance to serve and to see Him do marvelous things. I had a doctor’s appointment today. Looks like chances are I may have some more years of blessing and adventure. That’s great.

I started to google “67,” but I wasn’t sure I could take the excitement. One year at a time is the way I roll.