186

That's a pretty random number but if thought about it is pretty amazing.

1. It is an even number
2. It is a gonal number
3. It has 8 divisors
4. It can be factored 3 times (2x3x31)
5. It could be a chapter number....
6. .....a page number....
7. ....a house number....
8. ...a bus number
9. It could be the number of times you danced back and forth while waiting for your turn in the bathroom this morning
10. or the number of times you fake burped before your husband said he has had enough

186 can mean so much to so many that the possibilities are endless. To me, 186 represents history, wisdom, beauty and love.

The lovely lady on the left is my Gaga. She just turned 90. This picture was taken at her birthday party. The lovely lady on the right is Aunty M. She is 96. She is my grandpa's sister. Between these two, they have lived a whopping 186 years. They are both pretty sharp yet and they both have nicer handwriting than I do. I don't hold that against them at all though. Nope. Not at all.

At 90, Gaga is a wealth of information when it comes to cooking. She used to work at one of the highshools here in town as a lunch lady. She made fresh kolaches everyday to serve during lunch. No one, and I mean no one, makes better kolaches than she does. She likes to talk about her childhood and look through her treasure chest with the picklets. She tells them about the field trip she took to Quaker Oats and still has the little box of cereal they gave her. She talks about her chores growing up and that her favorite chore was chopping wood. She talks about the respect, honor and love that was shown in her family. She is amazing.

Aunty M is my dads aunt. She is actually his Godmother. Her son Padoo and my dad are the same age. They grew up friends and still are. Their names rhyme so Aunty M always called my dad by his first and middle name. At 96 she still does. She has well over 100 grandchildren, great grandchildren and great-great grandchildren. She has the patience of Job.

I can't even begin to imagine the knowledge these two have. They have lived through 16 different presidents, The Roaring 20's, The Great Depression and world wars. They grew up with no cars, no tv, no computers, no microwaves and no electric stove. They have seen invention after invention during their lives. Yet, these two are as simple as they come. They remember the simpleness they grew up with and have mirrored their lives to those values.

I sat down and calculated how many years there are with the 5 pickles who reside in the pickle barrel and we only add up to 124. I hope that when I reach their age I can say I have accomplished as much, seen as much and enjoyed life as much as they have.