Let me tell you, friends, this aging process is the real deal. Oh, yes.

This isn’t something you don’t know, for I would surmise that most of my readers are in the upper age ranges. And we all probably have our age-related stories.

Our joints become stiffer as our tendons become less flexible. As this occurs, we become more injury-prone.

As we age, our biceps becomes smaller, as skeletal muscles deteriorate. This is a process known as sarcopenia.

As we age, our bones become thinner. By age 80, one in two adults has brittle bones. This causes a greater potential for a fracture.

Foot problems are also more prevalent, with chronic pain for some, and this creates balance problems, which can lead to falls.

We now learn that all those supplements we may be taking aren’t really helping. Eating properly is more helpful.

As we age, we may lose up to three inches in height, between our fifties and late seventies.

These changes in our physical well-being are by no means the only ones that may occur. Hardly. You and I, quite probably, can add other “challenges” to this list. I know I can.

Illnesses can cause other negative results, which compound the problems aging causes.

With absolute certitude I can state that I have tried to lead a healthy lifestyle. Exercise and proper diet have been a way of living almost my entire life.

Yet here I am, less than a year away from my 80th milestone, and boy, do I have some age-related “stuff.”

This isn’t a “poor me” lamentation, especially when I think of those who have far more serious health conditions.

Then too, I think of so many others, who were a very good part of my life, many of whom I truly cared for and about, who are now gone.

Although losing family and friends over the years is very sad to all of us — and I am affected by this in no small measure — it is simply the way of things.

Such losses cause me — and you as well, I’m sure — to cherish this gift of life even more. And, to ponder why I have been granted such longevity.

I do not know what awaits when my course is run. What I might hope for may or may not become my reality.

Yet, I do know that I truly hope I will be able to express my gratitude for the life I was given to that higher power. I do this frequently now, and have done so almost my entire journey.

And yes, I’ll probably continue to grouse about the aches and pains, and limitations, that are a part of my existence. My aging experience.

This is human nature, I suppose.

NOTE — The source of the age-related data I referenced is the 2018 April/May issue of “AARP The Magazine.”