It's never too late to change
When someone sits down in front of you and begins quoting from a classic English novel before you have had a chance to say anything, you never forget them. Betty, 76 years old, was a woman I had known as a patient for less than a year. She was a forthright character, and as I opened my mouth to speak she cut me off by loudly saying,'What man thinks of changing himself so as to suit his wife? And yet men expect that women shall put on altogether new characters when they are married, and girls think that they can do so.' She then sat back in her seat and said, 'There now - what do you think of that?'
I had to confess I was completely nonplussed and must have looked stunned, because she softened and said it was a quote from Trollope she had recently learned. I remained unsure of why she had quoted this passage, and told her so. She related the story of her remarriage after her first husband's death. Unfortunately, there was discord in the second marriage, as her husband wanted to control her life. Having endured this for as long as she could, she wanted my advice. First, she wondered -whether a divorce would affect her health for the worse; second, she wanted to know if she was fit enough to take up golf. My answers of 'Possibly' and 'Yes' to these questions were duly considered and accepted, and she went away to think about the situation.
The next time I saw Betty I was walking past a golf driving range. She was swinging her club wildly about, and every now and then would howl with laughter before trying unsuccessfully once more to hit the golf ball. Carefully approaching her from the side to avoid injury, I asked how she was doing. 'Never been happier,' she said. 'Didn't listen to my husband and bought myself this set of golf clubs.'
She told me she had spent her long first marriage doing what her husband wanted. She hoped her second husband would be

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different but found after they had married that he, too, wanted everything done his way. Rather than end her days frustrated and unhappy she had looked around, remembered that she had always wanted to learn golf and taken it up despite her husband's protestations. For the first time in her life she was doing something for herself, which had brought her happiness.
Today, several years later, Betty is still with her husband, and golfing when the weather allows. Although she is far from happy in her marriage she is pleased she has found an activity that is hers alone. Now over 80, she still occasionally quotes Trollope, and says she is considering writing a book on him when she finds the time. I would not be surprised if she did, just to prove she could.
Getting older does not mean you have to stop learning. You can get excitement and satisfaction from projects at any age. You may not be the next Andre Agassi, but you don't have to win a Grand Slam to achieve your personal ambitions.

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