I boarded my Southwest flight, made eye contact with this woman, and knew I needed to sit next to her. Meet Vera, a champion pistol shooter. We talked for 3 hours. I spent 10 hours weaving her stories together. Over time, I’ll share them in this thread. “I won 8 national championships for pistol shooting after I turned 50. I didn’t even learn how to shoot until I was 41. Now, I’m 77 and competing in a new sport for fun: shotguns. Let me tell you something. You can write a brand new life after 50. This time around, you have the knowledge, skill, and wisdom from trying and failing. And most importantly, you have money. I needed so much money to travel and shoot. Buying bullets is like setting cash on fire. Trust me, 50 is a new beginning. You can do even more. You can be even prettier. You can have so many tools at your fingertips. When you’re young, you don’t really trust your abilities. But don’t worry, you will, because time will help you prove yourself to yourself.”