A Wrinkle and a Wonder a Week #5

a WRINKLE a week

Act your age! This is what we say to children when they are  acting up in some way that we view as troublesome or silly and not age appropriate. We expect they can do better. We may not verbalize it, but we also expect our olders ( my preferred term) to act their age. What does that mean? There is my belly button age, and then there is -how I act, how I feel, how I look and how I think. I may think my “age” is solely determined by the calendar, but lots of people will tell me how “old”I am. Cultural expectations and ageism are strong currents to swim against. And, sometimes too old is too old!  Trump is too old to be president and I’m too old to become a prima ballerina. That’s not ageism, that’s reality. Research from Harvard  found that those who hold negative beliefs about their aging, die sooner, by as much as seven years!. What I think about my own aging can become a self-fulfilling prophecy. “ I think I’m old, therefore I am! So act my age? What does that mean? 

a Wonder a week

I give myself a break on how I handle my aging, after all, this is my first time at this. There are some good examples and certainly some bad examples, but it is fundamentally up to me to invent it as I go along. Considering the mine field I tip toe through daily, I think I’m doing pretty well for a novice. I don’t get up every day, look in the mirror and say “Let’s do this!”, but I bet few people, young or old, do. I show up and occupy the world in my own unique way. Ageism is very insidious.Have you really thought about the “old people” jokes we hear? Here’s a Google listing:  “75 ‘Old People Jokes’ for Seniors to Laugh at and Feel Seen. Laughter is the best medicine for aging.” This sounds like a suggestion to take your “laugh” pill and you oldies won’t see that you are being laughed “at” and not “with”. “ Life is short, smile while you still have teeth.” Is this funny? I’m not laughing. Just tell me a good dirty joke instead. So I guess it’s all about my attitude and the “wonder” is I get to choose my attitude and determine what getting old means to me. The situation is in flux!