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Saturday, April 5, 2008
12:00 AM
Aging gracefully is not an easy feat. It requires commitment. However, I feel that with determination, everyone should be able to achieve it. I believe that old does not equate to useless and incompetent. Many people feel that once a person is old, they would be unable to contribute to the society and would only put a strain on the younger generation. However, I beg to differ. The elderly are the ones equipped with rich and fulfilling life experiences that could be applied to many issues today. For example, the author mentioned that her granny, at the age of 92, still dabbles in real estate and politics. This is concrete evidence that shows that the elderly has the ability to impact the society and to determine the developments they wish to see. In a society that focuses on personal achievements, I feel that humility is of utmost importance. It is only when we learn to humble ourselves and learn from the elderly, can we be exposed to broader perspectives, allowing us to make more informed choices.
One other significant fact is that the elderly are the ones with considerable spending power. This is most likely because their children have all grown up and are now able to survive independently. It is also due to the fact that they may have paid up their mortgages and debts over the years, and hence, have built up a reserve of money for their retirement. It has been observed that the elderly are spending more as well, injecting money to the economy, helping it to flourish. The notion of retires being poor and idle should be eradicated in this time and age.
On the other hand, in the article, the author mentioned that even though taking care of the elderly and frail will incur huge costs, stretching already overburdened pension and health-care systems, it is not detrimental. He feels that this can be overcome if the elderly continue to contribute productively to the society. I feel that this is an understatement. Many elderly are plagued with chronic sicknesses that limit their thinking and actions. If this is so then how would they contribute to our society? Their hearts might be willing, but their bodies, not. As such, the expenditure spent on health care would far exceed what the elderly can give back to the society. In addition, the worsening of environmental conditions such as air pollution, and global warming is bound to take a toll on people’s health, particularly the elderly who are most susceptible. This would further add to the health care expenditure.
Well, so what are the implications of all these? I feel that this growing demographic trend may soon change the mechanics of our world. There might be schools set up specially to target the elderly group, allowing them to enrich themselves after retirement. Conversely, we might also find that the bulk of people doing community service might not be the youths, but the elderly! This is another way that the elderly can ensure that they are not draining our country’s resources without return.
In conclusion, I feel that it is time that we change our mindset on the elderly. It is time we uproot the misconception that the elderly are the leeches of the society. In actual fact, they have much to offer us. If we take the time to understand them better, we would be able to see them in a whole new light- we would be able to see them as one who drives the economy, one who has invaluable insights and the agents of change in our world today.Melissa
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