Happy 85th Birthday, Merla!

You already know how much I appreciate Senior Citizens. So it won't

surprise you to learn that one of those dear Seniors

invited me, and most of Southeast Nebraska,

to her 85th birthday party.

Merla is the Matriarch of our little church family.

She is bright, articulate, diminutive, and has incredibly beautiful handwriting.

Her party invitation was included in our church bulletin.

It was an Open House affair, hosted by her children, at the local bowling alley.

I went there with two of my Senior pals.

Ines had Lucille in the car when they called for me. As I slid into the back seat, Lucille remembered she had left Merla's card at home, so we detoured to collect that. We were fortunate that parking was available at the bowling alley...we took the last available spot.

As we entered the party, the little Guest Of Honor was greeting her many guests. She wore a pretty pastel pantsuit and sported a corsage to celebrate the occasion. There was a guest book, a basket for cards, and balloons graced the table. The daughters were serving assorted flavors of cake with "85" on each piece. There were hand made mints, nuts, punch, ice cream...and almost no place to sit. The place was crowded with laughter, loud voices and lots of friends and relatives.

When you get to be 85 years young, you have collected many friends AND relatives!

The three of us settled at a table near a fan to take advantage of the cool air and began to enjoy our goodies. I surveyed the room and at that moment I was the youngest person there. As many times as I have been "33" I found comfort in that.

There was a gale of laughter at the next table and one of the gents seated there jumped up and tapped me on the shoulder. Proud as punch, he announced, "We are trading hearing aids!"

I looked. Sure enough. Every man and woman at that table had a hearing aid in front of them and were shuffling them around as if there were a shell game of some sort happening.

The man wore some type of back belt-a support, I guess. It was situated on the outside of his shirt and was fastened crooked. He did not seem to mind. He just wanted us to know that no matter which hearing aid they had, none of them worked and this fact apparently amused this whole bunch!

As folks finished their refreshments, they mingled, working the room, shaking hands, hugging, reminiscing, laughing and generally having fun.

As we walked to the car in the heat of the Nebraska sun, we decided that being 85 was just pretty great. But having your birthday party at the bowling alley was simply the best. Especially since we did not have to wear those rented shoes!

Because I am such a health nut, I think there is every chance that I will maintain my well being to 85 and beyond.

I make a point to shop online for the items to support my health shown on

www.motherconnie.com

and you can do that, too.

Meantime, I'll check with the people at the bowling alley to see how their schedule looks for my 85th birthday...do you think they are taking bookings that far in advance?

Please, won't you leave a comment about birthday parties, health, Seniors, or anything else that's on your mind?