With old age comes wisdom, wrinkles and a third thing that starts with a w.
So, I’m in my twenties. No one considers me old, except for my younger siblings. I’ve not been in this life for very long. But there are some people that have. And they have a lot to teach us.
At what age would you consider someone ‘old?’ When I was a kid, anyone over the age of fifty was old to me. Currently, I’d raise the bar to seventy. At seventy years of age, most people are either retired or thinking about retiring. They’ve been on the planet for seven decades. That’s a long time.
I don’t use the term ‘old’ in a derogatory fashion, but rather in a descriptive manner. Just the same way I would expect someone to describe me as ‘young’ at my current age, when I’m in my eighties (God willing, if the world hasn’t ended by then or something, you never know), I wouldn’t get offended if people described me as old.
Being old is still sometimes seen as something bad. It’s associated with ailing health and weakness. Yes, I get it, aging is a reminder of our mortality. After one passes a certain age, their physical abilities will eventually diminish. Their hair might grey (or go away all together). They might have trouble remembering things. Getting older can bring about lots of challenges. But it doesn’t make people any less human.
I’ve had the privilege of getting to talk to ‘old’ people, people in their seventies or eighties. You can learn so much from them, not just from what they say, but from how they act. Old people tend not to worry about what people think about them. They don’t talk or act in a certain way to please people, they just act like themselves and say what’s on their mind (sometimes a bit bluntly, which can be hilarious). They focus on what matters: spending time with people close to them and enjoying life.
Old people also give very valuable wisdom, wisdom that they’ve acquired over the years. I appreciate it when they take time to give younger people like me some advice, or just talk to us. I once had a conversation with a elderly woman I met in a laundromat when I was in university and it was really cool. She talked to me like I was her grandson, which was really sweet.
I’ve seen elderly people who don’t let their age hold them back unnecessarily. They exercise, go out for parties and enjoy themselves. They don’t take life to seriously. So why should we?
So, the next time you get a chance to interact with an old person (depending on your definition on what ‘old’ is), take time to ask them about their lives, any things that they’ve learned over the years, and what they enjoy doing. You may be surprised at what you’ll get out of it.