I was walking around the local lake just yesterday, and I looked up to see a hawk carrying a good-sized fish in its talons. I watched it until it disappeared over the trees, only imagining the veritable feast it was about to have with nothing being left but the bones.

     Bones. Menopausal women are especially prone to the loss of bone density. My DEXA scans have always shown that I have osteopenia, a harbinger of osteoporosis. If I am not careful and fail to do my weightbearing exercises, I could break a bone, a cardinal sign of osteoporosis in menopause. The bone does not regenerate as quickly, if at all, when we age.

     So I walk around the lake, trying to do my best to stave off bone loss.

     Before starting my last bone density test in January, the technician asked me if I lifted weights. I told her I did not. She asked me again. Again, I said no. I took that as a recommendation that I should start lifting weights.

     Lo and behold, what should appear on my pathway the very next month but some hand weights. I chose a 2lb weight and a 3lb weight. Light blue and pink respectively. It is the story of my life. Usually, by the time I get to choose from a batch, the crowd gets there before me and I am left with slim pickings. The mates were missing so I had a mismatched pair. C'est la vie.

     I wear partial dentures. With the combination of partial dentures and caps, I have a wonderful smile. (Even with insurance, the money I have spent on my dental work would get me an enviable used car.)

     I noticed that the narrow metal part that runs along the roof of my mouth was causing me a lot of discomfort, and it eventually became painful for me to eat. After adjusting the denture, using his tools to file down some of the metal, he informed me that the metal was rubbing against the roof of my mouth in an area of bone that keeps growing. What?!!! I have a bony lump that continues to grow on the roof of my mouth? I have been blaming the denture and it is me? I am trying literally to wrap my head around this bony growth and, by the way, I have a bony growth in one of my ears.

     I am flabbergasted that I have osteopenia and all of these extra bony growths sprouting from my body. It seems oxymoronic. Am I another species? A subset of homosapiens? What is really going on?

     In any event, I take my calcium supplements but I have cut back in the wake of my dentist's revelation. I have a suspicion that excess calcium is the cause. I refuse to blame my errant genes which most certainly is the cause of my tooth loss.

     I also have direct evidence that my bones are aging. On my last chest x-ray (yes, chest x-ray), the radiologist's findings gave the condition of my heart and lungs and ended the report with "bones:...normal for age". I wondered if I were twenty, with the same imaging, what would not be normal. After reading this result, I started double timing it around the lake.

     By the way, one of the bones in my lower back did not separate in the womb. I had profound pain in my lower back as a child. I would just curl up in a fetal position on my bed, curiously telling no one. The episodes would not last long, and one day, without my even noticing, the pain was gone.

     The fusion was diagnosed with an x-ray by a chiropractor when I was a young woman. It is highly unusual for a chiropractor to take an x-ray. Quite rare actually. I guess I was meant to know.

     That same chiropractor said that my cervical bones looked like I had been in a car accident. What does one do with that information?

     I said all of that to say this... It is nothing short of extraordinary what our bony structure can withstand. Menopause makes this structure vulnerable, but we can be proactive and try to protect it.

     It is telling that when we die, just like the fish swooped up out of the water for a meal, all that will be left are the bones.

Postscript: When I know I am going to be in the sun for an extended period walking, Mary Kay's Daytime Defender Sunscreen with SPF 30 protects my skin from the ravaging effects of the sun. Mary Kay's Supreme Hydrating Lipstick prevents my lips from becoming dry outdoors. My favorite color while out on the nature trail is Better Than Bare. It has the feel of a lip balm with just a hint of color and a pleasant flavor. One day I thought it was in the car, but I could not find it. I moved the seats and I was looking for it like I lost a $100 bill. That is how much I like it.

                                                                 GOD FIRST. FAMILY SECOND. CAREER THIRD