It seems to be the latest social media fad — the “then” and “now” pictures. I’ve seen posts with original Facebook pictures next to present day profile pics, and I’ve also seen pictures from “way-back-when” beside “this-is-me-now” shots. The changes are usually noticeable especially when some pictures are pulled from the toddler or elementary school years.

I’m not aware of any scientific studies that calculate the changes that take place in the aging process according to specific segments of time, but time is always working. It’s also a fact that people living together or working together on a daily or weekly basis don’t detect the changes in aging among themselves. It’s when they see each other less often and between longer spaces of time that proves aging is in working mode.

I confess aging is a fact I no longer try to escape. My skin is aging. Sun, air pollutants and time are the culprits — so I’m told. My bones are aging. Time sucks the calcium out of our bones, leaving them brittle and fragile. Beware of falls. My joints are aging. Friends and family are replacing old knees with new knees. That’s a solution, but I’m waiving that option for the present.

My hair is aging. The color and thinning remind me daily. My muscles are aging. “Sag” has moved in and shown “tone” the exit. Weights and exercise have proven positive results against sagging muscles, but I’m getting close to accepting the sag look. Weights don’t carry a single appeal to me.

My teeth are aging. I feel some shifting going on possibly due to changes in my calcium level. My eyes are aging. Glasses are necessary for small print and for seeing the digital clock on the chest opposite our bed. My hearing is aging — obviously — like my other senses that are depreciating.

This physical report could be a depressing fact if God hadn’t stepped in and promised his children new, glorified bodies. Thanks to Adam and Eve listening to Satan instead of their Creator, we all live in aging bodies that will end in death. Emu oil and a medicine cabinet stocked with vitamins might enhance the aging process, but nothing or no one can promise a fountain of youth.

As humans, we recognize the fact of aging. As Christians, we don’t run from it. We see it as the cycle that eventually opens up our entrance to heaven. That’s when all God’s children will celebrate “then” to “now” images.

“Behold, I am making all things new,” is our Savior’s wonderful description of eternal life with him. Makes me want to do a cartwheel to celebrate, but I can’t. It’s that aging thing.

Letters to Camille Anding can be sent to P.O. Box 551, Brookhaven, MS, 39602, or e-mailed to camille@datalane.net.