One of the easiest groups of individuals to characterize is old people. Obviously. your definition of old may be different than someone else’s, but you get what I mean. I’m talking predominantly about Baby Boomers — aha! There’s a characterization right there. But there are others.
Whether you think of an old person being 50 or not old until they’re 75, here are some items, attitudes, and ways of being in the world that are often associated with older people;
Comfortable shoes
Pill organizers
Early bird dinners
Getting into bed early, sometimes even before sundown
Naps
Sensory impairment, including vision, eyesight, and taste
Spoiling grandkids
Gardening
Antiquing
Always scouting out a comfortable place to sit
Birding
Lacking in technological skills with phones, computers. and reading tablets
Temperature fluctuations
Physical aides to enhance mobility … canes, walkers, wheelchairs
All of these things have been associated with aging. You don’t have to experience all of them to see the pattern. For myself, getting into bed before sundown and early bird dinners are two traits that I embraced wholeheartedly. I’ve also been somewhat shocked at the number of naps I’ve snuck into my busy schedule.
These are just descriptors of the characteristics of many elders. These aren’t bad or good; they just are. How do you feel about characterizations of elders? Can you relate to any of them? What other characteristics might be on your list?
Not yet needing walking aids, but the rest does describe a lot of my life. However, the adage “Getting old ain’t for sissies” is also apt–it takes courage to deal with a slowly decaying body; courage to get up and care about a world that is doing the same damn thing you hated 50 years ago; courage to laugh in the face of aversity and still find humor; courage to support friends who may not be with you for long; courage to get your affairs in order; courage to admit that you, yes, even you may in fact be mortal.
Thanks, Antonia!
“Au courage,” Christine. I agree!!