I can’t stand “compliments” steeped in ageism.
“50 is the new 30!” … Why?
“You look good for (insert age)!” … What is (insert age) supposed to look like?
“60 Where?!” …. Right here, dammit.
Ageism is so pervasive, people buy into it often without realizing it. Folks who make these types of statements mean well. They mean to make you feel good. But if you think about it, why does feeling good have to be equated with being and/or looking younger than you are? What is 30, 40, 50, 60, 70…. supposed to look like on a person? Says who? Why? Why can’t a person just look good, period? Why can’t the sentence just end there?
Tscccchhhhhhws. (The sound of me “sucking my teeth” …Ask an African friend what this means. If you don’t have an African friend, do yourself a favor and make one. LOL!)
The equally hilarious and insulting part is that usually said compliments are spilling out of mouths that have not lived enough life to know how glorious aging can look, and feel. Hence the “complimentary” shock at your age. Hence any response other than an emphatic “Thank you!” being deemed attitudinal, or sensitive. Suddenly, you become the problem with your questions because you don’t just swallow the twisted point of view being served.
“How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you were?”
Satchel Paige
What pisses me off and breaks my heart at the same time about it is that it is a cultural mentality that is so deeply embedded that many people never even think to question it. They’ll throw their own perfectly intact dreams out the window because they themselves have decided that they are too old to even consider them. My question to you is not “How old are you?”. I’d rather know you by your dreams and your thoughts, than by the number of years the man-made calendar says you’ve been alive, or the cages society says you belong in depending on that number.
Welcome to the adult prodigy project, where 40 is the new 40, 50 is the new 50, and onward. I am here to slap you (and myself) in the face with Anti-Ageism. I may not always be polite in my language but I will always try to inspire us and remind us that every year we get to live is a privilege that we should celebrate with every possible cell in our beings.
the adult prodigy project 
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