David Beck: Life comes at you fast, but is ageing really that scary?

Do getting angry at fireworks and having sore knees qualify me as a grumpy old man? Photo / Getty Images

OPINION

I think I'm getting old.

That may sound weird to some, considering I turned only 30 this year. An 80-year-old may argue I'm in my prime.

However, I've noticed a few things recently that make me feel closer to 80 than 18.

This thought occurred to me one night when I lay in bed feeling irritated by the young hooligans on my street letting off fireworks. Don't they know people are trying to sleep?

A glance at the clock told me it was only 8pm, a perfectly reasonable time to be doing such things.

I've also noticed I groan whenever I stand up, and a 40-minute game of social football leaves my knees stiff and sore for days.

When I was a teenager I would attend four football trainings a week before playing consecutive 90-minute games on a Saturday. What happened?

Life certainly comes at you fast, as do technology upgrades.

My partner is only four years younger than me, but even she seems to pick things up a lot more easily when it comes to technology. I remember when our family first got a computer and the internet in the 1990s, now children are glued to smartphones and tablets, navigating which is just second nature.

Do children still read books? Do they even know what a CD or a cassette is?

I remember having a discussion earlier this year about where we were on September 11, 2001, when two planes hit the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre. I vividly remember being in class at primary school, watching the events unfold on the news.

I was shocked when one of the younger members of the group, who I loosely considered to be of a similar age to myself, said she was not born when it happened.

In saying all this, I wonder if my concern about being left behind should be replaced by appreciation and wonder of the remarkable age we live in.

My childhood straddled the internet era so I'm in the unique position where I mostly grew up with it, but I also remember a time without. I understand the benefits of the online universe, but also that we can survive without it.

With age comes wisdom, I hope. While I no longer feel bulletproof, I am much more aware of things like my mental health. I'm more confident in my abilities and better at making decisions.

So, maybe leaving my 20s isn't so bad after all. Either way, it can't be reversed, so why not look forward to the future?