Learning From Your Older Friends

 Since I was young, I have always enjoyed being around older people.  Many of my  friends  were decades older than me.  Now, a number of these people are experiencing falls, strokes, and health issues.  I listen to their challenges, observe their recoveries, and imagine what it is like to be in their shoes.    Sometimes what seems to me to be a solution is something they won’t consider.

We can learn from our parents as we watch how they age.  My mother stayed home with her dogs and enjoyed her house.  She was a very solitary individual..my father, on the other hand, had a wide social network.    He drove his friends to the bridge club every day, and regularly went out for drinks and meals with them.  He was very popular and well liked.  Both my parents were avid readers, and they enjoyed watching movies each night together.

The one area I really see that affects us as we age is self care.  Those who live a life of hard drinking, taking drugs, and engaging in high risk behavior often end up angry, and unpredictable socially.  They lash out at others for no apparent reason, become suspicious and paranoid,  and often die young. So much of it has to do with the personality.  Grandparents are often very aware of this; so are teachers.  

Whatever we do to our bodies over time accumulates.  Life takes a lot of self discipline and focus.  Daily habits become ingrained and solidify into our future.  The more in tune we are with our inner talents and life path, the better choices we can make in our relationships and career.  Not using our talents can cause extreme envy, rage and frustration.  Our gifts do not go away…our natural abilities are energy that needs to be used and expressed.  Otherwise we become tortured souls.

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