By Susan Goldberg Schwartz

When I was a child, time seemed endless…the days long, full of possibility.  There were fewer worries, more to explore.  Raising children, time was never enough.  There was always too much to do – work, cook, clean – and too little time to sleep.   Working full time, there was always another meeting, another problem to solve.  I was always falling behind, trying to catch up, to catch my breath, to catch a breath.

I turned 70 this month.  How I wish I knew then what I know now.

There is less time ahead then behind me and time feels different now.  At moments it seems to stand still, and at other times, it slips away.  It is elusive, fragile, precious.  Today, I want my days to be filled with joy, quiet, spontaneity – with less doing and more simply being.

Seventy years has great significance in Jewish tradition, as I have come to appreciate through years of learning and teaching, especially with my many Wise Aging Women’s groups. While studying texts from Jewish sages and modern teachers about how to age with wisdom, joy and spirit, we have laughed, cried, shared stories, dreams and fears.

In Pirkei Avot (5:21), our Sages map the stages of a life: learning in youth, strength in midlife, understanding and counsel in later years. And at 70 – seivah – literally, the crown of gray hair. Not simply aging, but a stage marked by spiritual depth, thoughtful speech, and the wisdom that comes only from a lifetime of experience.

In the language of gematria, 70 corresponds to the Hebrew letter Ayin (ע), which also means “eye.” Perhaps this is an invitation – to see more deeply, to notice what was once overlooked. Seventy is often described as completeness and is associated with the 70 nations, the 70 faces of Torah, the idea that there are always multiple ways of seeing and understanding.

Even the Hebrew word sod – secret – carries the numerical value of 70. I once learned that a secret in the Torah is not something intentionally concealed but is to be revealed.  I like to think that there are still secrets waiting to be discovered, beyond 70!

A line in Paul Simon’s song Old Friends has been playing in my mind: “Can you imagine us years from today, sharing a park bench quietly? How terribly strange to be 70”.   And yet, here I am.

I turned 70 this month.  I look back over these seven decades of my life with both pride and gratitude. I have wisdom to share, and a curiosity to see whatever still awaits.   When I was younger, 70 seemed ancient.  Today, it feels…different.

I don’t feel old, except for my knees.  And my gray hair.

Susan Goldberg Schwartz, a lifelong Jewish educator, cantorial soloist and Mussar facilitator, has proudly reached the age of elderhood!