The Mission of the Elderly
Introduction
When we come to the age as an elderly person, we used to recall our past time that we had fun or regret. I have remembered what was in each period in my life. I went to schools studied and played with my friends. When I left the school, I got a job and married, and there was a time when I raised my children. The time to concentrate on my family has passed, after children are independent, and recently the circumference has become quiet except sometimes taking care of grandchildren. In the present era, even if we retire over the age of 60, we still have several decades to date until death. If it is normal that our life is over 80, we set as the first half for the period of child rearing, and as the second half, we have time to watch quietly into ourselves. In other words, like other living things, it takes the first half to reproduce to maintain species, but humans have the same period in the second half to do for something. This seems a waste time on the aspect of evolution that organisms continue to repeat generations, but I think there may be some important meaning.
What can we do after we have realized that our physical strength and vitality became lower as the age called elderly? Certainly, the lifespan of humans has prolonged, with the benefit due to improvement of living environment and medical technology. However, with these benefits, does it make sense to live long?
Regarding to the elderly
In the old times when the living environment was harsh, it was difficult for individuals to live for a long time. People who lived until they were old were few in the group, so those people were respected as elders. In that situation, such experience and wisdom of the elderly served the group. Today, however, when the people of 65 and over becomes one quarter of the population, its personality has become diverse and we can see many elderly people around. Unlike the era when there had been few old people, in case that one in four people are old age, the meaning and role of the elders in society will also change. We thought in the old time that we should respect elderly people, but now elders have much diversities of personality, for instance, weak, disable, healthy, also compassionate or mean people, etc. So, old people are respected not only by the elderly but also by our personalities.
In recent years, I think it is no good that the old man will live only causing the troublesome family and others, due to the tough hardship of the nursing side. I have a feeling that I do not depend on the caring from others, so I live independently as much as possible while the body can move, in the end I seek a way to senility by restricting eating rather than a framework of aged facilities and nursing. Until then, I think that it is ideal to cooperate with younger people and work with the sense of volunteer.
Society relationships
From the viewpoint of society, I think that a chance to work should be offered in the case that an elderly person who has excellent ability and maintains vitality. It should be effective for society to continue progress in the trend of growing complexity. If there is such correspondence, there will be encouragement in the old age, and for younger generations it will increase meaning to enhance skills positively. Nowadays, the re-employment of an old man who finished his work at retirement is extremely difficult even if he has excellent skill. However, according that society will become more complicated in the future, an elderly person who has overcome difficulties should be utilized the valuable experience. Among them, an old man acting forward will appear and will contribute to the rise of consciousness towards the future. In general, however, there are many scenes after the retirement that forced life to be closed at home and facilities. If they do not get in touch with other people, they may emphasize the selfish parts, becoming a self-oriented elderly who make troubles. The environment where they can live in contact with various people is desirable rather than in the environment of only elders.
Moreover, we should think about how we can maintain the contribution to society even if we become an elderly person, rather than insisting on our achievements at the past. At elderly time, if we only annoy others, we will force to move the corresponding facility, as the lack of morality and synergy with society. Even if you have achieved an excellent work in your past, if you will evaluate yourself excessively after retirement, you may become selfish, lacking coordination with the surroundings. Your glory was past and you should be aware of one milestone in the development to the future. Moreover, even if we worked hard to save money to spend freely in our future, if we become dementia and we do not understand anything and trouble others, we cannot help it. It seems necessary for us to concentrate and cooperate with young people using our brains and to create appropriate stimuli internally by ourselves. In other words, even if we are old, we still train our brains by ourselves, so it means that now is a tough era for the elderly.
Diversity of the elderly
It is ideal if we can be useful for society while enriching our old age. Speaking of the benefits of old people, it is to transfer information to later generations, to make use of the accumulated experiences and acquired skills while living for a long time. Even if we look at the history of humans, people accumulate knowledge and experience while conveying inheritance and technology to future generations. In modern times, the field of research and development has expanded, which improves the intelligence of the whole humans. Improvement of that intelligence has also changed our living style, so there are many people who do not simply marriage and raise children, but also sacrifice a lifetime to hobbies and research through singles until death. As a result, the trend of declining birthrate has become prominent in advanced countries. People do not average into one personality according to the uniform lifestyle, but many people who aim to enjoy life by being absorbed in their favorite things. Human retirement will adapt radiation not to the survival of species such as reproducing, but also to efforts to enhance intellectual and individuality. The human society seems to have a flow of consciousness rising in the direction of fullness of intellect.
Not only money to be reliable
However, it is a fact that the amount of income decreases after the retirement age. Even if we have accumulated money that would be necessary in the old age, we are not able to live freely without a worry about living expenses for the long period after old age. We will able to keep just in humble and to contribute only consuming a few amounts every day. Here may be a misunderstanding that only money considers in daily life to be reliable at our old age. It is certain that it costs money to eat and keep living. However, do we need so much money in the old age life? It is obviously excessive desire if we want to have much money to travel freely at the old time, since lifespan is prolonged and extra time.
It seems funny, however, to worry about the money you do not need in the future, as expenses for planning for retirement are supposed to be prepared. However, you may worry about the expenses of the aged facilities because you cannot expect to rely on the relatives. Or, you may worry about the fee of much money like hospitalization if you get sick in your old age. I suppose, however, if I become a big injury or dementia, that is, I cannot maintain self-sustaining, then I shall cause my family inconvenience and I cannot act freely by my own will, so that I want to pass away this world as age of senescence. Therefore, I think, it is useless to pay a lot of medical care and facility expenses.
Unfortunately, if you have become lacking even the money necessary for daily life in the old time, it means that there would be any defects before retirement. It is a result as self-responsibility, even if you blame someone, you cannot help it. Still, if you have a mind to live positively forward, and if you have willingness to try hard in the current situation, you should be able to secure a minimum life without disturbing others. The reason is that many normal people in society have conscience and compassion and will evaluate and aid people who strive to do something honestly. From now on, we cannot assume that society protects old people or gives elders preferential treatment, simply because of the elderly, so that we try to strive fulfilling by ourselves until death. For my part, I could have lived luckily neither being accident nor a big sickness because of my environment and assistance of my family, so I should appreciate that I could have lived for a long time.
My spirit for the elderly
In contemporary times, it is true that we should not expect preferential treatment for the elderly simply because we are older. In the world where the number of elderly people has increased, I would like to make my life more fulfilling at my own responsibility regardless of age. In a harsh environment for the elderly, if we have valuable experiences and wisdom beyond difficulty, we would be able to contribute to rising in consciousness in society. However, how can we contribute to returning wisdom to society gained through our experiences?
There are certainly some old people with sufficient physical vitality, but in general, the retirement life is the situation where the physical ability declines and the physical strength also passes the peak and the brain cells gradually decrease. However, is it permissible for intellectual life beings to linger slowly by inertia and not to refine our brains brushing for decades? Although older persons do not have physical strength, we need to squeeze our brains and to act something to do even the elderly. Those actions will change the social system as well. In the circumstances where people's consciousness has developed further as the society complicates, almost elders cannot respond to society only by sticking to the past customs as the stiff brains. Even without physical strength and clarity of the brain, we should be able to lead to the right choice from abundant experience. The old man should not discriminate by the age, but rather explore the meaning as a lubricant that leads society better to coordination.
For example, from the eyes of an old man who is aware of the decline in physical strength, the movement of a child seems to have infinite vitality. If you find a sprout to grow and its buds become fruit, what is it other than fulfillment? Will not you feel a big flow that grows children who will be responsible for the next generation beyond the framework of family members? The future of humans will be not only our own grandchildren but also all children are the basis for the future. There may be a mission to boost the children to raise their personality in a better direction with the point to see the future.
Mission of the Elderly
Long story short, the future revitalization of humanity will expand from a completely different field from the current political economy world. It comes somewhat altruistic thought that the elderly has a feeling that will enrich the life fulfilling, because they aware of the remaining years, and want to make it effective. Such ideas will be consolidated to the future. In general, the elderly is in a situation where it is released from various responsibilities due to the old age. We need not to accumulate assets anymore, and the duty of work becomes lighter. In other words, without obsessing ourselves, we can expand our scope of thinking, and we can see the world with a somewhat unrestrained gaze. Moreover, considering the direction in which society will be better, we are freely able to think and act altruistically. If human consciousness keeps rising in an intellectual direction, accordingly a movement in which diversely expanded personality cooperates and converges should occur there. Here, the elderly who has experienced diverse relationships are indispensable. There should appear collective groups based on the altruistic consciousness of thinking all others.
At the final stage of life, we will feel sad to become unable to live without support of caring from others. If we are not in a special circumstance that aims for longevity record, I think that it is usual to wish to choose a quiet road to senescence (death) rather than trouble other people. The average lifetime of humans has increased rapidly from last century, but I think that humans at the present are far from the completion of the spirit. It seems certain for people still dominating hatred and confusion in the current world. If so, the flow of life may accelerate generation change, and the lifespan may become shorter in the future. The flow of life has adapted radiation due to any threats and sudden changes, repeatedly selecting among the emissions occurring in the group, so this flow will continue in the future. There may be a mission, that is, we would add some information to raise consciousness of human race to change future. The elderly is responsible for the role of adding the experience and wisdom necessary for the cooperation, in the bridge of alternation of generations. Therefore, the elderly that takes altruistic behavior with ambition will increase, rather than living selfishly at the closed circle. So, I would like to find my position there.
