"A generation goes, a generation comes..." (--Ecclesiastes 1:4)
"Elderly" is probably the best word... it's better than "seniors" or "old." An elder is regarded with great respect among the Dine' (Navajo), because she or he has, one hopes, finally reached the stage in life of wisdom, of true maturity. Grandmothers and grandfathers are enormously important to the younger generations.
Among the traditional American Indians who I know, most of the elderly are active (unless seriously ill)--no one thinks about "retiring,"despite the ailments of aging. And, traditionally, most are living in extended family households, cared for at home by their children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
I think that age segregation in the U.S. (and elsewhere in the world) is a sad comment on the cultural estrangement among the generations within our society.
Conflicts occur within all families, in all cultures. But the tendency to separate the elderly from the rest of our society (with some exceptions), and the need for "wealth" to survive within this society, and the growing gap between rich and poor, all combine to make becoming an elder an often painful and lonely time of life, when it should be a time of fulfillment and peace as life begins to draw toward, one hopes, a good old age and its end.
The Elderly
"A generation goes, a generation comes..." (--Ecclesiastes 1:4)
"Elderly" is probably the best word... it's better than "seniors" or "old." An elder is regarded with great respect among the Dine' (Navajo), because she or he has, one hopes, finally reached the stage in life of wisdom, of true maturity. Grandmothers and grandfathers are enormously important to the younger generations.
Among the traditional American Indians who I know, most of the elderly are active (unless seriously ill)--no one thinks about "retiring,"despite the ailments of aging. And, traditionally, most are living in extended family households, cared for at home by their children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
I think that age segregation in the U.S. (and elsewhere in the world) is a sad comment on the cultural estrangement among the generations within our society.
Conflicts occur within all families, in all cultures. But the tendency to separate the elderly from the rest of our society (with some exceptions), and the need for "wealth" to survive within this society, and the growing gap between rich and poor, all combine to make becoming an elder an often painful and lonely time of life, when it should be a time of fulfillment and peace as life begins to draw toward, one hopes, a good old age and its end.