I thought I was the only person who was irritated by that Olay commercial.  The question Boy Abunda asks is: Why do women lie about their age?  What irritated me was that it was a faulty over-generalization.  Not all women lie about their age.  Some men lie about their age also.

I am proud to be 46.  Not because I still have flawless skin– I never did have flawless skin, you know (my goodness, at two months old, I had a severe outbreak of rash! It turned out to be an allergic reaction to milk).  It’s not because I am still svelte — I have had humonguous hips since puberty.  It’s not because I have great hair either — I have never had great hair.

Boy Abunda, I don’t lie about my age because I am happy that I survived thus far.  All I ever wanted since I can remember is to grow up.  I hated being a kid because the grownups were always telling me what to do, how to behave, where to go, whom to be.  I have always wanted to grow up — and at 46, I am all grown up.  That’s why I don’t lie about my age.

Boy Abunda, I don’t lie about my age because I am happy that even if I don’t have drop dead diva gorgeous looks at age 46, I have a husband who thinks I’m drop dead diva gorgeous.  And that is all I have ever wanted.  I wanted to meet a man whom I can love and who would love me back. At 46, I have that kind of love.  That’s why I don’t lie about my age.

Boy Abunda, I don’t like about my age because I am happy to have given birth to two children (all normal, without anaesthesia, not even topical for the episiotomy) and whom I breastfed.  My kids aren’t extraordinarily good looking or smart, but I enjoy their company enormously and they enjoy mine.  That is all I have ever wanted, I wanted kids of my own to love.  At 46, I have two kids I have seen grow up.  I’m still around and they are about to finish high school.  That is why I don’t lie about my age.

Boy Abunda, I don’t lie about my age because I am happy that I finished school without getting raped, getting pregnant or dropping out of school because my parents died or because I got hooked on drugs.  I survived puberty, I survived school. I wasn’t bullied. I survived taking the Bar exams!  I enjoyed studying at (what for me is the best university in this country) at the UP.  While I was there, I didn’t become collateral damage during a frat rumble.  I didn’t get mugged or raped while walking around the university. That is why I don’t lie about my age.

I don’t lie about my age because I saw Martial Law fall like thick darkness and I watched freedom restored. I watched the dictator flee into exile.  I saw the cell phone.  I saw the internet. I saw the Twin Towers fall.  I have been a witness to the events of history unfold all these 46 years.  I am that lucky to have seen it.  That is why I don’t lie about my age.

I DON’T LIE ABOUT MY AGE because I am only so happy to be alive and to have survived. I may not be rich or famous or influential.  I am here.  I am alive.  To people who love me and to people whom I love, I matter.  I have mattered to these people for 46 years.

I am not proud to be 46.  I am happy to be 46.  I don’t care if I look youthful for my age or I look frumpy and dumpy for my age.  I am here, I am alive.

Sa aming mga Tagalog, hindi baleng tumanda or mag-mukhang matanda basta’t may pinagka-tandaan.  Ang mahirap, yung tumanda nang walang pinagkatandaan.  Since I make an effort to learn from my experience, I would have to say that growing old to be 46 has been quite a learning experience. At 46, I am happy to be alive and still be sane (at least I still think I’m sane).  I still have control over my faculties.  I can read and I can learn.  And that is why I do not lie about my age.