‘a reckoning with the truth of mortality.’ Unknown
So a significant birthday comes around later this month and a new decade begins. While I discover that I have to wait another six years to obtain a much coveted bus pass, I will soon be able to procure a ‘senior’ railcard. Consolation or inevitability? At this point, I’m not sure.
According to online advice, I should be celebrating this diamond jubilee with white roses, planting a tree and embracing the ‘golden years’. I don’t quite see it myself, but nevertheless I have spent a few moments pondering the impending milestone which I’ve found considerably less intimidating than the big 4-0 was.
The quote above sounds rather pompous to me but I continue to tell myself, ‘You’ll never be this young again.’
Why is 60 so significant? 60 seconds in a minute, 60 minutes in an hour. I’m not sure either fact is relevant apart from reminding me of the inevitable passing of time.
Other random discoveries include the fact that there are sixty marbles in Chinese chequers; it’s the highest score one can achieve in darts with a single dart; the Babylonians apparently once had a number system based on sixty (a sexagismal system – who knew?) and sixty is the atomic number of neodymium (whatever that is). My thanks to Google for all of the above.
Instead of exploring these semi-interesting cul-de-sacs any further, I turned my attention to the important bits of 1964 itself. This was the year that Cassius Clay officially became Muhammad Ali. I discovered that it was an Olympic year, hosted by Tokyo. The games began on 10th October and finished the day after I was born. Team GB won 4 gold, 12 silver and 2 bronze medals. I hope the fireworks were big enough to be seen in Northern Rhodesia since they were celebrating becoming Zimbabwe on the same day as the closing ceremony when 73 years of British rule came to an end there.
Eight days before I was born, the Conservatives were dismissed in a General Election in favour of Harold Wilson and his pipe with a majority of five. Six days before my entrance, China exploded their first atomic bomb. Winston Churchill waited another ten weeks before shaking off his mortal coil in January 1965, presumably completely unaware of my arrival.
Interestingly for me, having spent such a large proportion of the last ten years in South Africa, 1964 was the year that Nelson Mandela and seven others were sentenced to life imprisonment for treason and sent to prison on Robben Island after the famous Rivonia trial. There’s a story with a much happier ending than its beginning.
1964 was a bumper year for births in the UK: I was one of 1,014,672 who arrived in the world as 611,130 left. Unemployment was a mere 405,000 and you could buy a house for an average price of £3,360 (imagine!).
Two of my all-time favourite films came out in 1964: Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang and Mary Poppins. Clearly a bumper year for Dick van Dyke. The best selling album of the year was (no surprises here) from The Beatles: A Hard Day’s Night, and this was the year they went to the USA.
Perhaps more pertinently for writers across the board, the script (including lyrics) for A Fiddler on the Roof was published, which may explain why there have been multiple revivals of this musical this year. Classic books published in 1964 include: The Spy Who Came In From The Cold (John Le Carré), God’s Smuggler (Brother Andrew), and Roald Dahl’s Charlie And The Chocolate Factory. Perhaps I should celebrate by reading them all again.
I endeavoured to do a bit of a Bible study on the number 60 in the hope that I might gain some pearls of wisdom. I discovered that Isaac became a father at 60, and there are various references to the number in relation to cities, people groups, measurements (cubits) and the number of animals involved in various Old Testament fellowship offerings. Turns out the word ‘Sabbath’ is used sixty times across the sixty-six books. None of these things seem particularly apropos.
Only two books of the Bible have sixty or more chapters. Psalm 60 isn’t too fun but Isaiah 60 begins with the words: Arise, shine,; for your light has come and the glory of the Lord is risen upon you. Now there’s a great starting point full of hope for a new decade and a diamond jubilee. I think I’ll stick there.
There are numerous celebrations planned and I’ve already been celebrated and spoilt in multitudinous birthday ways. This is a milestone I intend to celebrate throughout the coming year with as many friends and family who are up for it; after all, I’ll never be this young again. Happy Birthday to me!
[Images from a selection on Pixabay]
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