The Old Gray Mare

It’s no mystery to me why I was resistant to having gray hair. In my childhood, I heard my mother frequently quote the old folk song, “Oh, the old gray mare she ain’t what she used to be, she ain’t what she used to be…”  She used the words to refer to a horse or a woman who was past her prime. It was also a way of describing herself as too tired to perform an unpleasant household task that she assigned to me.

I never knew what was beneath the light brown that colored my hair until I was forced by a scalp condition to give up my monthly fix. With fear and trembling I watched my hair change from ash brown to mousy gray, until a glorious mop of white hair emerged and changed my whole outlook on life. Strangers stopped me on the street to comment on my beautiful hair, friends said I looked younger. Just maybe “the old gray mare” was better than she used to be. 

It is sometimes hard for senior adults to embrace change, but it is usually the best thing that can happen to us. We never know what exciting opportunities are just around the corner. Proverbs 16:31 tells us “The silver-haired head is a crown of glory, if it is found in the way of righteousness.” (NKJV) We can’t turn back the hands of time, so we should embrace all that God has in store for us. We might be in for a pleasant surprise. If you are curious, click on the Meet the Bloomers link at the top of this blog to see Charles with his “new gray mare.”