From Little House in the Ozarks: The Rediscovered
Writings by Laura Ingalls Wilder:

As New Year after New Year comes, these waves upon
the river of life bear us farther along toward the
ocean of Eternity, either protesting the inevitable
and looking longingly back toward years that are
gone or with calmness and faith facing the future
serene in the knowledge that the power behind life's
currents is strong and good.

And thinking of these things, I have concluded that
whether it is sad to grow old depends on how we face
it, whether we are looking forward with confidence
or backward with regret.

Psalm 119:16
Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.
And in Your book they all were written,
The days fashioned for me,
When as yet there were none of them.