The Modern Girl Friday: It's Just a Matter of Time

When I was in my early 20’s, I remember hearing the poem ”When I am Old I Will Wear Purple” by Jenny Joseph’s. The poem is an ode to the freedom that old age brings. I remember how cool the poem sounded because it was the words of a woman who was too old to care!

As a younger woman who was still trying to find her place in the world, I found the idea of leading a life where I could spend my money “on brandy and summer gloves and satin sandals.” It would seem you were beholden to no one and you really could just let yourself go! Be scandalous…wear the color of royalty and don a red hat of a racy woman. Live life on your terms and not have to apologize for choices you make.

It was an anthem to me, and countless other women that said “Go ahead, do it! YOU DESERVE TO LEAD THE LIFE YOU WANT!”

But from where I sit now, I look back on Joseph’s poem and say: Why wait to wear purple when I’m old? Why not now?

I get reminded from time to time how life doesn’t stand still or wait for you to get older. The world goes whizzing by every day and at some point you turn around and wonder where the time went. I mean seriously – can you believe it’s April already? Wasn’t it January just yesterday? Time doesn’t wait for us, so why should we wait until it’s almost too late?

A great example about putting things on hold is my ballroom dance class. It took me 6 years to find a class and time to haul Lenny to, but we’re doing it and I think we’re a better couple for doing so! I have lost count how many times I have heard from others, “Wow, my spouse/significant other wish we had started to dance at your age.” And while most of the time it is meant as a compliment to how Lenny and I dance, I feel bad because somehow I think they regret not starting sooner.

Think about it for a moment. How many times in your life have you said out loud, “I’m going [fill in activity here] when I get older?” I’m not sure what the heck we are waiting for! We always seem to come up with excuses as to why we can’t do certain things. Worse off, we always seem to make the excuses sound like we’re martyring ourselves for a higher cause.

Think about something you REALLY REALLY want to do. Now think about how many of these excuses you have used to NOT do it: It costs too much. Oh, it’s so far away. I don’t even know where to begin. I’d totally embarrass myself or my family. I don’t want to go by myself. I have work. I’ll have time when I’m older. I’m too busy. It’s only a dream. I’m scared.

Instead of waiting for your golden years to wreck havoc on the world by wearing purple, we should be heed the words of gypsy punk rockers, Gogol Bordello:

“Start wearing purple wearing purple (da da da da da)
Start wearing purple for me now
All your sanity and wits they will all vanish
I promise, it's just a matter of time...”

We are never too young to start wearing purple, so to speak, because eventually, we’ll all be too old to do anything. If we’re all headed in the same direction, then there is no point in delaying it. We’re born, we live life, we get older, and we die.

It all seems pointless to save everything for the end when we could be wallowing in joy right now. Can we really afford to “wait until we’re older?” If you are reasonably secure financially and (more importantly) in yourself, there really is no excuse to put your life on hold. We should be out there living every day like it is our last. Waiting until we’re older just seems like a waste of time.

I’m pretty sure Jenny Joseph’s intent in writing “When I am Old…” was to let us know that we all eventually control our own destiny and happiness. And while that is very true – we definitely shouldn’t be putting that control on a late time table.

Never too early to wear a purple top people!