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Doing 60 in a 30 Zone
I'm bumping down the beach on a
four-wheel quad. The wind whips my hair off my face. Sand gets into my eyes and
nostrils. The sky is a dark blanket filled with hundreds of shiny pinpricks.
In front of me, seven ladies zoom
along the sand. They raise their hands in the air and sing.
“Ai yi yi yi yi.”
It's a perfect evening in Baja.
It's freedom. No cell phones. No beeping and zinging. No worries.
A birthday celebration like none
other.
Half the group are women turning
thirty, the other half of the group, of which I am a proud member, are turning
sixty.
Yes, we are entering our sixth
decade with gusto. And why not? The last time I checked with a travel guide,
being young and fit isn’t a prerequisite for acting wild and crazy.
Now of course, we ‘mature'
senoras celebrate a bit differently from our young senoritas. We stay up later.
We drink more. We flirt without restraints or expectations. Because with age
comes wisdom. And a certain kind of freedom that lets you act without second
guessing yourself.
It also brings a few other
changes. Such as what items might be considered‘essential' when packing.
Whereas the thirty-year-olds brought moisturizers, body oils, and SPF 15
sunscreen, we older ladies packed anti-aging creams, puffy eye reduction oils,
and SPF 500 sunblocks.
The younger girls brought birth
control pills and vitamins. We wouldn't be caught dead without hormone pills,
antacids, and high-blood pressure meds.
The young women filled their
suitcases with flowered sundresses, fancy sandals and even high heels. We
brought comfortable walking shoes, sweat pants and tank tops.
Each thirty-year-old has several
bikinis. My friends and I all have one piece suits with wraps that cover our
jiggling thighs.
The senoritas brought manicure
sets. We senoras made sure to have scrub brushes to get the dirt out of our
fingernails.
But not only do we pack
differently, we carry with us different baggage. And with a mind set allowing
us to let that baggage go.
So, in the evening, while the
young girls post their adventures on social media sites, we older ladies sit on
the deck, sipping margaritas looking up at the sky. We know there will be
plenty of time later to look at our photos and re-live the trip.
For now, we are going to live
the trip.
The young girls feel the need to
stay in touch with 'real' life, sharing their every move. We have checked out of
'reality' and checked into Paradise.
We know all the locals. They know
us, not as 'older ladies' but as 'That Crazy Quad Gang.'
In thirty years when our young
girls turn sixty, I hope I can be here to celebrate with them.
After all, age is just a state of
mind. Of course, it helps to have a body that holds up. But there is nothing
like driving a quad, at night, on the beach to keep your mind and body young.