Life Begins At Forty

I've often heard it said and sung

That life is sweetest when you're young

And kids, sixteen to twenty-one

Think they're having all the fun

I disagree, I say it isn't so

And I'm one gal who ought to know

I started young and I'm still going strong

But I've learned as I've gone along

That life begins at forty

That's when love and living start to become a gentle art

A woman who's been careful finds that's when she's in her prime

And a good man when he's forty knows just how to take his time

Conservative or sporty, it's not until you're forty

That you learn the how and why and the what and when

In the twenties and the thirties you want your love in large amounts

But after you reach forty, it's the quality that counts

Yes, life begins at forty

And I've just begun to live all over again

You see the sweetest things in life grow sweeter as the years roll on

Like the music from a violin that has been well played upon

And the sweetest smoke is from a mellow, broken and old pipe

And the sweetest tasting peach is one that's mature, round and ripe

In the twenties and the thirties you're just an amateur

But after you reach forty, that's when you become a connoisseur

Then it isn't grab and get it and a straight line for the door

You're not hasty, you're tasty, you enjoy things so much more

For instance, a novice gulps his brandy down, he doesn't understand

Observe a connoisseur, the way he holds it in his hand

How he strokes the glass, fondles it, warms it as he should

Smacks his lips, ah, slowly sips, hah, boy, it tastes good

Life begins at forty

Then it isn't hit and run and you find much more fun

You romance a girl of twenty and it costs you all your dough

But when a forty thanks you, she hates to see you go

And girls of twenty, all they want are big men

Big men with strong physiques

I don't say that it's bad

But you do get tired of those damn Greeks

Life begins at forty

And I'm just living all over again