I’m not ashamed.

Young people in grocery stores are like gold. 

“Would you read this for me and see if there is cane sugar or corn in there?” 

Mostly it’s fun to be social and thank them for their time, see how their day is.

I’m trying to remember if I was helpful and understanding with people older than me when I was a sprite.

I hope so, though I suspect I was more in search of “character material” for cracking up my siblings or for drama class.

It’s a good thing I’m learning to cook healthy foods from scratch. Corn is creeping into “from scratch” items like spices. A magnifying app could help I guess-Mrs. Magoo* squinting at labels for Dextrose or Lecithin. My cousin once taught me the pinhole trick you make with your 2 hands and fingers near your eyes to make things clear.

Actually, it still works; however, I can’t hold the spice bottle AND do the pinhole trick at the same time unless I bring labeled things to a cheese sampling table with my face down, doing pinhole. 

The aarp.org (American Association of Retired People) website got me thinking about how difficult it is for our elders to get, make, and eat food.

18% of Americans over age 65 are hungry.

About 1 in 5.

That’s heartbreaking.

Lack of transportation, relying only on social security, and the inability to see labels are major contributing factors.

Years ago, I would deliver meals on wheels to home-bound seniors. The need was so great and the needy so grateful. One woman was blind but knew the sound of a hot meal arriving and how to hold the package just so. Another had lost her son in the Gulf War and wanted company. 

They were so adorable and a real wake-up call about caring for my future self. With so many surgeries, I have been home-bound too and could imagine “What if I just really want a juicy peach or hot piece of chicken?” What if I had to just trust that the person coming to my door was bringing me a hot meal once a day?

I’m learning a lot on the aarp.org website. Lots of quizzes, puzzles, games and helpful information about technology, retirement and community.

For $12/year, I really like it so far, even if I have to zoom in on the pages on my tablet.

The change in my eyes has been so sudden that it’s a bit frightening. I don’t feel old. I feel like 25 and that the nutrition labels are a socially-engineered joke. ” Ha! We’ll get this introvert to make friends in the stores!”

And so they have.

Take care of your future self today. Save. Invest. Live on less than you make. Don’t rely on Social Security alone. Only a fool consumes all he/she has today. In the house of the wise are choice food and oils.
*Mrs Magoo is like Mr. Magoo. Older cartoon man with huge glasses that still don’t help him see well.
Image credit. Copyright Dreamworks Classics