Wisdom Through Experience
Wisdom Through Experience
Sharing friendship and vitality with those who shape us and our community.
As we grow and our perspectives broaden, we are given countless opportunities to make the world better for ourselves and our communities. The ability to offer education, access or opportunity to younger individuals or those needing a hand. A chance to lend an ear or a shoulder to someone who is going through a hard time, or to be friendly to a lonely soul. Small gestures can be so impactful in helping keep a community whole and realized.
Today it pays to be technologically focused and active, and to stay up to date on trends, tools and programs that can help you develop your skills with precision and push your career faster. While this is undeniable, let us also remember to acknowledge an incredible community asset that offers lifetimes of experience, years and years of learning what works and what does not, offers great direction for our path, and wisdom regarding our actions and character. This treasure is our elders and the wisdom they carry through experience.
When we can be patient enough to let the story unfold, their lessons are such powerful tools for passing wisdom and knowledge. And when delivered with a sense of humor or suspense, the stories can be greatly entertaining. As we move into more Zoom meetings and globalized socialization, let’s try to remember that our face-to-face interactions are so important, and that for many of our seniors, it is their normal and is so appreciated. Taking the trusted word from an individual who has experienced similar struggles, successes, and triumphs; one who has seen the ebb and flow of time, is invaluable. In a world in which families often will not have the time they would like to spend with their immediate family, we are seeing more of our seniors fall into care facilities. While it is a blessing in the current times to have such infrastructure, we also have people who are walking out of the more active days of their lives into an unfamiliar space that could easily prove uncomfortable, especially if one is struggling with their memory or cognitive abilities. It also appears that this placement and lack of familiarity to life as it was before the facility, increases the speed at which these mental faculties begin to sever. The cost of these facilities is high and requires many positions (medical, administrative, janitorial, etc.), so we continue to see elderly having to resort to such things as reverse mortgage to pay for such care, in a way to see themselves through the winter of their life without feeling as though they are holding down the family they have closest to them. It would be nice to see a transition to more family and community oriented heartfelt care for one and all. While it seems we are a long way from comfortably caring for one another this way as a civilization, if we can remember the golden rule of treating one another as we would like to be treated, we can, as a whole, stay on an honorable path with a respectable seat for all members, regardless of age or walk of life.
In the coming years we could stand to stick together a little closer, and help one another along a bit more than we may previously have had to. Perhaps our Grandparents, Great Aunts and Uncles, and the other elders within our community have some stories for us of a time they stayed clear and focused on the light during dark and uncertain times, or of realizing their wealth during a trying time. Like the sun for the next 6 months, let’s try to bring just a moment more of brightness into the world around us each day.
