Although the equipment was draped in black crepe paper in celebration of Paul's 60th birthday, the gymwas quiet and the girls were working hard as usual.....that is until they returned from a break between events blowing horns so loud that is sounded like a million geese had invaded the gym! The girls surprised Paul with a giant card which contained many of their fond memories, a gold #1 Coach pin, and a giant cake decorated in blue and black! Sherry and George then demonstrated what a floor routine performed by a 60 year old looks like. This had the girls rolling on the floor in fits of laughter. Assisted by Jeffrey, George then mounted beam and took some very unsteady steps, did a quarter turn and displayed a sign that said " How do 60 year olds stick a dismount?" After another turn and a flip of the sign, the answer was revealed "They use denture cream.". The girls’ laughter was louder than the horns! Jeffrey finished off the routines by joining George as they demonstrated how a 60 year old vaults. Once the girls stopped laughing they went to their next events with thoughts of cake on their mind which they enjoyed immensely at the end of practice!
Wow! It is hard to believe Paul is 60! Well, maybe not so hard to believe when you stop to consider nearly 4 million baby boomers are turning 60 in 2011! Yup it’s true; every hour there are about 330 baby boomers in this country that are hitting the big 6-0! It was funny to see how shocked some of the girls were to learn Paul’s age and even funnier to watch their faces as some us reminisced about the times he grew up in…….. from the carefree 1950s, to the rebellious 1960s, to the disco era of the 1970s, to the crazy big hair (come on I know this was your style) of 1980s, to the 1990s electronics, to the first decade of the 21st century; which unfortunately most of them recognize due to the global terrorism of 9/11, and our current wars and economic crash that none of us have ever seen before! The significance of these decades is something most of our gymnasts will not understand for many years; but they all appreciate that turning 60 now, Paul has seen a wide range of attitudes, achievements, disasters, joys, peace, wars, friendships, and gymnasts!............ and has survived the many challenges that life holds for everyone, no matter what age! 
HAPPY BIRTHDAY PAUL!
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