I swiped this quotation from Elizabeth Moon. I was not familiar with it, though I have been a fan of Dorothy L Sayers for years.
“Time and trouble will tame an advanced young woman. But an advanced old woman is uncontrollable by any force.” – Dorothy L. Sayers
One day, I was driving home from somewhere or other, and I saw my future. A bright red Honda Fit tootling down the road, driven by a white-haired old lady. In my mind, she was a “dog lady,” who traveled when the spirit moved her, and knew how to fit a jar between the door and the jamb to open it and slide heavy things on rugs and cardboard to move them from room to room. Who maintained her independence as much as possible, and swore to do it for as long as she possibly could.
And who set people back on their heels because she didn’t fit into the “little old lady” mold, and they couldn’t figure her out.
::knocks wood that it comes to pass::
I anticipate that freedom from convention and the expectations of others. I ponder this inclination of mine to prepare for it, and wonder if I should just hold my nose and jump in the deep end of the pool.