I don't, but I heard someone say this recently. Seriously? Hating old people. So ridiculus! So, I'm going to list a few reasons why I LOVE old people:
- They have all kinds of knowledge. Even if Great-Uncle Al tells some exaggerated stories, he's probably lived through several wars and experienced some of the stuff in our "history" books first hand. Plus, they can share some of their blunders with you, so you can learn from their mistakes.
- They can get away with anything! OK, so, you see an old lady walking her cat on a leash. Funny and kinda cute. If anyone else did it, they'd be called crazy! They can wear wacky outfits and do all kinds of things and they don't care, and neither do most people. (Of course, this can also work toward the negative... I've known some seniors to disregard the rules or laws, even, and cite the cause as being old.)
- Along with having a wealth of knowledge, lots of them also have a wealth of STUFF. I've known a few older folks in my day, and their homes are filled with antiques and vintage clothes. And tacky stuff that was "hot" back in the day.
- Lots of times, they have sort of rare skills that most young people don't know - they know how to knit or bake the most amazing pies. My grandpa had HUNDREDS of poems memorized...
- No matter how old you start to feel, they'll remind you you're just a baby.
OK, so that was my personal list. I know they're sometimes slow at learning about new technology ("new fangled things") and sometimes they're a little too cautious on the road, but I think we have to appreciate the elderly - they're us, several years down the road!
Well said! I can never understand people that "hate" the elderly. I worked in a nursing home and then as a home health aide for several years and some of the most awesome people I know are working their way into their 80s and 90s.
They may be old, but they're an absolute blast to be around. And it doesn't really matter whether they're eccentric, somber, sweet or crotchety as hell. They say the most outrageous things. Do the most outrageous things. And don't give a flying flip one way or another.
I always had one patient tell me she lived by the rules until she was 70 so she could do whatever the hell she pleased when she turned 80. And she did too. If there was a wheelchair race in the hall, a dance party in the dining room, a poker game in the foyer, we knew who started it. Anything she could get up to, she did. Regularly.
It was great.
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"Truth is not only violated by falsehood; it may be equally outraged by silence" - Amiel
"The beginning of thought is in disagreement -- not only with others but also with ourselves" - Hoffer
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One of my favorite songs by Pulp:
"Help the Aged, one day they were just like you, drinkin' smokin' sex & sniffin' glue,
Help the Aged, some day soon, you'll be getting older too."
I played it for my human sexuality class when I did a presentation on sex and the elderly. Let me tell you, there are a lot of senior citizens out there having *way more fun* than you or I. :-))
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At least that's what they tell me. It likely beats the alternative though.
Each high tech advancement in medicine increases the demand for health care by keeping people in an elderly state longer. If medicine ever discovers a revolutionary new way to keep people young it will wipe out most of the health care industry. I wonder if this negative incentive has any impact on the direction of investment in research.
"Believe those who are seeking the truth; doubt those who find it."
--Andre Gide
Once when I was in class, I heard some students talking about what they would be like when they were old. A lot of them pretty much said they were going to act senile even if they weren't. Nothing illegal, but one of the guys wanted to be the whole "Get off my lawn, ya darn kids!" Crazy guy.
When I'm old, I'm going to carry around one of those giant bags and carry everything in it.
One thing I hate though, is once my dad started lecturing my 96 year old grandma about how to live to be old. I really wanted to ask him who he thought was the expert on that. Frankly, I think old people should be able to be as unhealthy as they want. Afterall, they desearve it. And what's the worst that will happen to them?
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I had a great aunt once who, at her ninetieth birthday party, was told (by my mother...) "I hope you live another 90 years!" to which my aunt replied, "Why?"
A couple weeks after the party, she passed away.
My great grandmother was in her 80's when she passed, but the thing I always loved about her was that she could get away with saying or doing anything. If you bored her on the phone, she'd say "time's up, I'm too old for this." and hang up on you. If she wanted to know about ur love life, she'd ask you...n not in delicate terms. She was never disrespectful, this was just her way.
P.S.
My grandma tells me all the time how getting old is the pits. Her words, not mine.