Am I really getting older? Despite how I feel on most days and how I look, after my intensive volleyball session tonight, I am finally feeling my age - the ripe old age of 31 1/2. After being sore last week, I wanted to attribute my atrophying body to being out of shape. But as Co-worker Buddy politely reminded me, "My friend, we are not getting any younger. Especially after you hit age 30."

Crap.

Am I really a thirtysomething? Damn. Thirtysomethings are supposed to be shuttling kids around in minivans to birthday parties and having their time wholly consumed with family activities. Waitaminute, that is me! Except we don't own a minivan. Yet.

Co-worker buddy also added that our bodies seem to kick into Decrepit Mode after age 30. Where we once could spend all day doing some rigorous activity only to bounce back spry and limber the following day. But now, after only spent a couple of hours on some semi-rigorous activity, it takes us days to recuperate. And that is only to recuperate to the point where we aren't aching and sore. Add weeks to that duration for us to return fully to our prime pristine health.

Fortunately, the Li family name has been blessed with a wonderful aging gene that makes us look younger than we really are. My parents have it, my sister has it, and I have it. Case in point? While I was in high school, I looked like an elementary school student. While I was in college, I looked like a junior high school student. Even now, I look like a college-aged kid to most people who meet me for the first time. I figure by the time I'm fifty, I might look like a thirtysomething. :D

Just a few months ago, I had taken Jen and the Kiddos with me to my table tennis league match after church on a Sunday. Since I usually go to the club or league by myself, most people have not had the privilege of meeting my wonderful family. And I believe only a few people from table tennis met my wife & kids at the tournament last fall. So while the weather was nice, Jen & the kids mostly stayed outside and was only inside briefly.

One of the guys there (Kitt) was so busy playing and practicing that he never noticed that my family was there with me. As I was getting ready to leave (Jen & the kids were already outside getting in the car), I handed the club director the box for Mr. Potato Head which he had gotten out for Braden when we were first there. Kitt asked the director why he had a Mr. Potato Head out as he hadn't seen any kids around. The director replied that he had gotten it out for my son.

The look on Kitt's face was incredulous. "What???" he nearly screamed out in shock and amazement. "Cliff has kids?!!?!?!?!" His wife laughed and asked had he not seen my cuties running around. "They're absolutely adorable" she added. Kitt still was in shock, "Man, I thought you were still in college or something," he said shaking his head. "But I guess if you have kids there's no way you're as young as I thought you were."

I always wanted to try my luck at one of those "guess your age" games you find at a carnival. Even with their alloted range, I bet I would have won 9 out of 10 times. Sadly I never took them up on their offer. But the way I figure it, it's never a sin to look younger than you are. It can only mean good things as I get older. And if you think I have it "bad", my sister (who is now...lesee...I'm 31...counting back makes her 28 - I can never remember her age right off the bat), my sister who is 28 and teaches middle school for crying out loud, people still mistake her as one of her students! People may be laughing now, but I figure we'll have the last laugh when we're 83 years old and look not a day over fifty. :D

However, I may need the assistance of a wheelchair come tomorrow morning when my muscles are seizing up and I am unable to walk. But considering the amount of fun I had tonight, it is well worth it. Again, we didn't have a great showing, but we had enough people show up to play 3-on-3 most of the night, and played doubles for the last hour or so. In fact, we have come to prefer this open gym arrangement in that we're playing much more this way than we ever would with a league.

Last week, my legs were actually in pain later that same night which almost never happened before. I suppose there is some truth to Co-worker Buddy's statement. But what doesn't break us makes us stronger right? At least my legs will look young and my body will be strong...or is it the other way around?