Age.....is it just a number?

One definition of age I came across while surfing the net & which I like is... 'a period or state of human life'.
Is age really just a number?
Why then do people lie about their age? (especially women, who lie they're younger than they actually are)
Why is it a condition for admission into some institutions?
Why is it a criterion into some form of employment? (I know some organizations have maximum age requirement)
Why is it a condition for consideration in relationships/marriages (eyebrows are raised when there's a huge age difference between couples).
I guess age is not just a number then....why fool ourselves? It goes beyond that. Age is actually a 'yardstick'  to measure, judge & compare our achievements.

When it's in our favour, we're quick to announce our age (when we feel/know our age is at par or younger than the achievements we have attained), the opposite is the case when it's not in our favour.
Sometimes though, age isn't a measure of what you can do. For instance, you find a younger person more gifted in wisdom & physical strength than an older counterpart, so really, it's a grey area.

Another issue I have with this age thingy and which is very prevalent in the part of the world (Nigeria) I come from is...wait for it....RESPECT!!! People respect and disrespect you based on your age (amidst many other criteria). Now, with the infiltration of western culture, our original custom & tradition are giving way to western influence....and our 'Nigerian respect' is fast fading away slowly but surely....which is not going down well with my people. You get a lot of people going on first name terms with one another (especially in corporate environment where you don't have the luxury of getting 'down & dirty'...lol!). Personally, I think you're as old as you feel, and age could actually be considered as 'just' a number, but to a reasonable extent. What I don't condone is a kid addressing another on first name terms even when he/she is aware there's a 10yr difference or more between them. Yeah, I'm very Nigerian/African and I maintain that this is wrong within the culture I grew up in and belong to, and I wouldn't do it.
Despite all I've said, I'm very youthful & young at heart, and so I can always pretend to be a teenager and blend with everyone...lol.

I ask again, is age just a number? I guess it is not. It is something we are all secretly (or not) conscious about.

Ciao!