> ADVICE FOR GETTING OLD GRACEFULLY
> 1. Do not retire. If you're over-aged, retire and get all the benefits but
> find another income-generating job or open a business that will keep you
> active physically and mentally. Travel and bond with true friends, play a
> sport, learn a new hobby and volunteer in your community or parish. Don't
> loaf around. Your spouse will hate you because you've become a sloppy,
> listless bum with nothing good to say about the household and things that
> you never bothered about before. Solve crossword puzzles, play Scrabble,
> write your memoirs, and above all, read ...this will keep you alert and
> keep Alzheimer's at bay.
>
> 2. Live in your own place to enjoy independence, privacy and a solo life.
> If you move in with your children, your rank or degree of importance is
> reduced to that of a bed spacer who has no place of honor or, worse, like
> crumbling furniture merely displayed with no added value. Might you kowtow
> to conform to their own rules that are not kind, considerate or mindful of
> you? If you witness your children engaged in a war of will and wits with
> your grandchildren, whom will you side with? Will they even appreciate your
> arbitration? Remind your children that silence is not a sign of weakness;
> you are merely processing data that is taking longer to complete.
>
> 3. Hold on to your nest egg, bank deposits and assets. If you want to help
> your children, do give, but not to the extent that you wipe out your life's
> earnings, singing heroically not a shirt on my back nor a penny to my name.
> Staying solvent and in the black is a good hedge against all kinds of
> tempests. You will sleep better, you will not be afraid to express your
> opinion and you will be confident about yourself.
>
> 4. Don't believe your children's promise to care for you when you grow old.
> Priorities change. Many children are not guilt-ridden or filled with a
> sense of moral obligation when the wife and offspring take top billing in
> their lives. There are still children who would consider it a privilege to
> show compassion, genuine love and deep concern for their parents but be
> warned that not all children think alike.
>
> 5. Expand your circle of friends to include young ones who will definitely
> outlive your old BFFs. Keep up with new inventions, trends, music and
> lifestyle including all the scams and schemes you should guard against.
> Remember that when you mix with the young, you also open a fresh avenue to
> channel your thoughts, experiences and values through so that the lessons
> you learned are not lost, forgotten or buried with you.
>
> 6. Be well groomed and smelling fresh of spring water all the time.There's
> nothing more depressing than seeing people exhale when you walk by because
> you reek of camphor or dirt. Old age or bust, don't
> look and smell like a corpse when you're not one yet.
>
> 7. Do not meddle in the life of your children. If they ask for your
> counsel, give it, but be ready to accept that they may not take it. Their
> situations in life cannot be compared to the situations that you
> experienced in your life. The playing field has changed and they need to
> develop their own set of survival skills. If you raised them to be street
> smart, they can handle themselves in tough situations and be able to read
> people. Champion and encourage their dreams and desires but on their own
> terms.
>
> 8. Do not use old age as your shield and justification for turning grumpy.
> There's nothing more annoying than an arrogant, old fool. Welcome each day
> as another chance to be kind and forgiving, to yourself and to others.
>
> 9. Listen to what others may say. Do not throw your weight around just
> because you are a septuagenarian or a nonagenarian. You are not a
> depository of knowledge. Even if the roles have been reversed, make growing
> old a fun-filled, pleasant experience for you and your brood.
>
> 10. Pray always and focus on your eternal life. You will definitely leave
> everything behind, a final journey detached from burden and care. Be more
> accepting that, sooner, not later, you will croak. Prepare your swan song
> with a humble and contrite heart. If you believe in a merciful and loving
> God, there is no need to strut like a star. Nobody is.
