In the Immortal Words of Ferris Bueller: Life Moves Pretty Fast...

It all seems to be happening very fast now.  First the long gray hairs peeking through.  Then the enlarged pores in the T-zone.  Now the crows' feet.  The past few years have been the slipperiest of slopes, with the steepest incline seemingly coinciding with these two years of T's existence.  Coincidence?  I think not.  It's like my body decided to crap out one feature at a time while I was otherwise occupied with growing a human being.

I wish someone could teach me how to grow old gracefully.  Call it vanity, but I really struggle with it.  But I'm doing my best to transcend it, to live in the moment.  I have these moments of clarity sometimes and suddenly I'm at peace with myself and the inevitable passage of time.  I remember years ago being on the 72nd Street crosstown bus.  As it passes through Central Park, there is a moment where the trees part and you can see the skyline of the buildings bordering the Park on the south.  It was always that moment that, as a young thing in New York, I always felt that clarity, that suspension of time.  It was that moment that I forgot where I was going just long enough to appreciate where I actually was.

Central Park South Skyline at night

I'm having one of those moments right now actually.  I'm sitting in the wings on stage at the Metropolitan Opera House while Paloma Herrera, one of American Ballet Theatre's world-class ballerinas, rehearses for Sleeping Beauty.  I've got a photographer here shooting for a magazine, but watching her, it's easy to forget time and space.  Again, it's a moment to savor - even if you're not a ballet fan, you'd appreciate the athleticism, the artistry and the dedication when viewed at this distance.

Photo: Rosalie O'Connor

It's these experiences that are teaching me just what "one-day-at-a-time" actually means.  It means forget about the crows' feet.  It means enjoy your little boy.  It means make the most of the ride because before you know it, you've reached your destination.