In just a few days, I will turn 50. That scares me a bit, because it’s a reminder to me of my mortality. Yet, it’s not that I’m afraid of death. I don’t want to die, but I’m not afraid of it. The actual part of being dead is a concept I’m strangely okay with. No, it’s the fact that my body is aging and no matter how much I want and try, physical limitations will begin to creep into my life that I have no power over.

Eating well and getting regular exercise can put off some of those physical effects, but ultimately, the DNA gets damaged and there are things that modern medical science just isn’t good enough to work past. This is something I will have to come to terms with, but I’m not ready for that yet. I continue to push myself physically, to stay fit, to be the best me I can be. Even at 50.

They say 50 is the new 30, and I believe it. I feel like I’m no older than 30, yet I know younger people who see me see an old guy who just happens to be healthy and fit. That’s okay. I have a lot of life experience to draw from that helps me get through a lot of the mundane and stressful situations they have yet to learn to deal with. Me? I’m a pro.

Fifty. I used to think that was old. Now, I think that age is just a number, to an extent. I have many adventures left in me, and lots of things I have yet to accomplish. I live as if I’m never going to die, yet at the same time, I know that my time here, as is everyone’s, is limited. Therefore, I try to live my life to the fullest, to laugh, live, and love as much as I can. I want to cram as much as I can into whatever time I have left, and I’m not going to do it on a couch sitting in front of a TV eating chips. I won’t help my DNA break down by being overweight, unhealthy, and unfit. I’m going out fighting.

Nobody should accept mortality sitting down. There’s so much we can do, whether it’s traveling, volunteering at a charity or organization we believe in, or being around those we love. I try to do all of the above: there’s time enough for rest when I’m dead. I live life to the fullest not because it’s so short, but because death lasts forever and there are no second chances.

Take charge of your life and make it a good one. Get healthy. Get fit. Life gets better when you give yourself the best body to enjoy it in.