Does Getting Old Hurt?

Occasionally I remember a stray thought from my childhood and it comes back to haunt me. "How does old age feel? Does it hurt?" I wondered about these things when I saw my elderly relatives struggle with physical feats that had become difficult. 

My question was prompted by the often verbalized opinion by adults that any pain a kid experiences is a growing pain. It made sense to me that if adults said kids had growing pains then getting old should be painful, too.

Now I am learning a new take on pain in relation to age. Getting old isn't painful by itself, but some diseases and conditions that accompany old age may do it. As a matter of fact, I rather enjoy the fact that I have lived a long time. But let's face the tough facts: tasks get more difficult as we age, healing is slower, reaction time is slower, and cell loss accelerates.  The only defense against the toll age takes is exercise. The doctor may call it rehab, but this is the place where pain really takes control. 

The goal seems to be to push your physical exertion to the outer limits. When my husband was advised to do exercise to improve his functioning, he refused because it hurt. I can see the logic of  rehab, but I'm not much better than my husband in the practice of it. Mostly I find it boring. I'd much rather read or surf he net or write a letter. I'd rather do almost anything than workout.  The last time I walked to exercise, I broke my foot. Events like that tend to reduce my efforts. Maybe I'll just get old and deal with it.

Grandchildren Are Grand

One benefit and joy of growing older is the ability to reflect on my life and remember how I came through the ages and stages of growing up. I spent last weekend with my daughter and her husband and two children. It was wonderful! I planned the trip around Katy's performance in the February recital of her dance class. Katy is in the youngest group and she only participated in one dance. It was a tap number and she was on the back row, but she was great. (This is a grandmother praising her, you understand.) 

I asked Shania why she never wanted to learn to dance. She said simply, "It's just not my thing." Good enough. Her thing was running for presidnecy of the BPA in her school. This year she surrendered the position to a new person and is now running for a state office in the organization. I am very proud of her accomplishments, too.

Now that all the fun is over, I am reflecting on where I've been and how some of it has affected me. I took tap lessons when I was 5 or 6. I remember the total embarrassment of getting caught in front of the curtain when it closed and having no where to go. I remember the demands of practice and the reward of smiles and claps.

I was president of my Girl Scout troop when I was 11. I don't know that I was great and I think Shania will surpass me, but I remember the responsibility that office taught me.  A few years ago I was the mayor of my town for about 4 years. If I had known I was going to need the experience, I would have paid more attention the first time.

It is fun and exciting and hopeful to see my grandchildren growing into competent and successful people. I want to applaud their efforts and support them through these experiences, good or bad. so that they are not afraid to tackle the next job. Growing up is hard work, but for me looking on, it's also joy.

Music That Sings in My Soul

I watched a segment devoted to Tim McGraw on  CBS Sunday Morning this morning. He commented on the importance of music in how we mark and organize our experiences. He referred to a song he wrote and sang entitled "Live Like You're Dying." His father Tug McGraw died afterward. He admitted it was the most emotional experience he ever had in recording a song. 

The interview prompted me to reflect on the way music has been important to me. I've never had any musical talent, but I've always enjoyed the message and emotion I found in it. I remember my uncle Jimmie would hear a song on the radio and say "I first heard that in 1934," or "I was dating this little brunette that really liked my hair." Now that I look back on it, I remember that Jimmie tied songs to significant events in his life.

I'm more likely to relate lyrics to truths like rare poetry and melodies to emotions, the kind that play in your heart. Mostly its the "golden oldies" for me. Some of the music I lean on are the hymns that carry the words of my faith. They inspire me and keep me going even when things are bad. Some songs are like old friends: they remind me of happy times, loving people, joyous events. I think Tim McGraw is right: Music helps us organize our lives and keep the beat regular.

Pliny the Elder

Reading the Latin classics is very rewarding. And it's true that there's really not much that is new in this world. We try to make it new or look fresh, but it's just another case of "everything that's old is new again." I found a website that contains the works of Pliny the Elder, and the translation is from 1601. Middle English is not all that hard to read. Actually it's easier than the Middle English version of The Canterbury Tales I studied a few years ago. The translation is attributed to Philemon Holland dated 1601. My logic reasons that this indicates that English had progressed toward Modern at this time. 

Pliny was an interesting man, brilliant, productive, a military man, and an avid scholar. He wrote constantly. His only extant work is the voluminous Historie of Natvre(History of Nature). The book addresses all manner of subjects that occur in our environment including culture, history, and science as Pliny experienced it. 
Some of his writing was dedicated to rhetoric which was the beginning of a young man's introduction into society and adult thought. Writing on rhetoric was a way of being productive while avoiding the notice of the emperor-Caligula and Nero were both volatile and homicidal. 

Much of his military service was spent in Germania. Pliny was a lawyer and argued cases after his military service was completed. He served as a procurator several times in different provinces. 

The first entry I read in the History focused on a description of elephants in Volume VIII Chapter I.  I love elephants. His observations are fascinating even though not scientifically accurate. Pliny also describes many other animals and it makes sense that he would. He was in Africa during his military career. Reading and exploring the writings of Pliny and his fellow Romans gives me a new excitement about the New Year. 

On Being A Busybody

I am often amazed at the wisdom and insight of older writers and critics. The writers of the Bible and other ancient observers of human nature are able to give modern readers a new view of life in the fast lane. I ran across a very useful site hosted by Bill Thayer which gives some beautiful pictures of Italy and volumes of translations of Latin literature. I found "On Being A Busybody" by Plutarch among the many he offers.

In the text I found beautiful metaphors describing the unhealthy atmosphere of a house without light and clean air compared to  "unhealthy and injurious states of mind which allow winter and darkness to enter the soul."  Plutarch advises that we should rid ourselves of these attitudes, but if a thorough mind-cleaning is not convenient, then at least disrupt the comfortable arrangement.

Plutarch describes curiosity as the "first malady" to inhabit the mind in this way, but not the only one. He defines curiosity as "a desire to learn the troubles of others" and it is allied with malice and envy. 

Why do you look so sharp on others' ills,

Malignant man, yet overlook your own?

Plutarch points out that if we are so interested in the ills of the soul, we would do well to examine our own, not our neighbors'. It reminds me of Jesus' words in Matthew 7 verse 5(NIV) You hypocrite, first take the plank out of  your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

Plutarch offers advise to help us remove this negative behavior from our present life and I am suggesting that in the early part of a new year is an appropriate time to proclaim this the year of freedom from the busybody existence. It is a process and may take a while.

First, Plutarch returns to the house metaphor. A homeowner separates belongings into groups-kitchen utensils, weapons, gardening tools, etc. then, Plutarch says to identify your shortcomings that flow out of the busybody attitude-the malice, the envy, the jealousy-so that you can attack them one at a time. Next, he says to "block the windows" so you can't see your neighbors' property and must focus on your own. Now you see your meddlesome ways as the evil they are and you ask yourself these questions-

Where did I err? And what deed have I done?

What duty neglected?

This is the beginning of freedom from your habit. 

Read the full text of Plutarch's essay.

Don't Say I Didn't Tell You

Getting better as I get older is a goal I cherish. It means I will gain insight and share love as I age. Aging implies a loss of vitality and energy, but it also suggests a gain in wisdom. I wonder if anyone has done a study to evaluate the "I told you so" factor. Many of the things I warn my children and grandchildren about don't happen immediately, so they forget I told them it would happen. 

I wanted to remind my grandson that there would be a day when he would want to be able to use good English. Now that he is selling cars to people who are educated, he needs to use the language better; it's so boring and dull to study all that stuff, much less get it in his speech patterns and mental processing. I tried to tell him he should study language and how to communicate. He just blew me off. I told you so.

There are lots of these incidents. I told some of my grandchildren they should work hard and love God and never give up. All that stuff old people say sounds so old, but it works. When you look at the people who didn't, it's easier to understand. People who failed at their elementary lessons may be a sad reminder that laying a good foundation is important, maybe more important than IQ , or a nice smile, or "natural ability," 

I keep remembering the song Roy Clark sang, "Yesterday When I Was Young"

Getting Older Is Inevitable

I've been enjoying my retirement years for a while now, but I did a little research and found out that retirement is better for me than for many people in the world. 

For people without children, retirement in Russia may be very painful. The family is the safety net that Russian culture provides for the elderly. Homes for old people are considered a source of shame. A program in the Kurgan region of Russia has provided a home for aged people as well as the wisdom and nurture of an older companion for the family. As with other parts of the world, the retirement age is the fastest growing segment of the population. 

Placing a person in a home for the aged costs 400 to 500 dollars a month, but when a granny is placed in the home. the cost is about 100 dollars a month. That doesn't sound like much for the family, but in the remote villages of Kurgan it may be a real deal. The family benefits from the wisdom, care and companionship of the granny and the granny gets a home and family.

The program is still small, but it may be catching on. There are currently only about 50 participants, but reports are very encouraging. Perhaps it will spread to other parts of Russia. 

Related articles

• Akbar emphasises on care for the elderly