Ringer, the same thing happened in my family, though my father and mother were a mere 48 and 43, respectively, when I was born. All through my rather sad childhood I swore I'd never do that to a child.

BUT when I finally met my mate and pondered parenthood, I reassessed -- and realized that it's not how old you are, it's how open you are to change. I am nothing like my parents. At 49, I am more flexible by far (at least mentally, though possibly not physically) than my mother was at 43.

Around the time I was born, my parents decided they were old. My husband and I have not done that; we never will. We had our first child at 65 and 44, respectively...old, you might say. But by conceiving him, we made a commitment to our son to retain a youthful outlook (it's too late to retain our youthful bodies!) at least until he leaves for college. Hey, it's not such a hardship, having to stay young!

Claire