Vivid memories of life’s firsts can make you smile or make you sigh with sadness. We all remember the first kiss, the first car, the first “real” job, the first heartbreak on that endless list. Many of us have similar items on our list of firsts, but do you really know how many things you have done for the first time? When we experience something we have never experienced before, we have no idea if it could change us. There is no way to predict how it may alter our path in life.

This past weekend I had a series of firsts after my hip replacement surgery. I walked a mile, climbed and descended the stairs in my house, and drove for the first time. I also powered through (phew!) my daily routine physical therapy exercises that will help me reach my goals of hiking and biking those hills again!

We need routines, the hundredth or millionth time that we have done something. Routines are predictable and help us to organize our life and accomplish our goals. However, firsts give us the opportunity to grow and expand our horizons.

As we age, routines can keep us healthy and firsts can enrich our lives in so very many amazing ways!