In case you don’t recognise the quotation … it’s from thesong, ‘Bookends’ by Simon and Garfunkel from the album of the same name.The full stanza is: ‘Can you imagine us years from today, sharing a parkbench quietly?  How terribly strange tobe seventy.’  I have often thoughtabout that line – especially in the past few weeks as I passed my own seven-decademilestone.  ‘How terribly strange …’

But here’s the thing. And I hope this is a welcome reassuranceto anyone reading this who still has a way to go before reaching the dreadedbirthday. It isn’t strange at all.  Seventyis normal. There’s nothing to look at here. I’m living my normal life. I’ve anew novel coming out next year and one already in the blocks following behind.I’ve finished the manuscript for a book I’m calling, ‘The Climate CrisisPicture Book.’  I’ve been walking theOffa’s Dyke Path with Sue and with friends. I’ve been on the zip wire at BlaenauFfestiniog. I still go to rock concerts. I still travel. According to the Stepzapp on my phone I walked  4.7 millionsteps in 2023 which works out as around 13,000 steps a day. And I don’t saythis to brag, I say it because every seventy-year-old I know (and I know a few)would tell you much the same thing. I couldn’t imagine sharing a park benchquietly with any of them.

A week or so ago a whole crowd of my family and my very goodfriends ambushed me with a surprise party. It was a genuine surprise. It waslovely. We partied into the night. I love every single one of them for beingthere and for keeping the secret and for being such amazing people. I was tooshocked and unprepared to give a proper speech, but if I had I’d have told themevery day of our lives is a precious gift. And don’t be afraid of seventy. It’sok. For me, seventy is the same as fifty but with problem feet.

The album ‘Bookends’ came out in 1968. Paul Simon and ArtGarfunkel were 26 years old when they recorded it. Of course theythought seventy would be terribly strange. When you’re 26 even 30 is prettystrange. Today they are 82. Older than Joe Biden. I bet they think differentlynow.  I do.