Have you ever felt resentful about getting older? Growing up, we learn how everyone wants to be young and vibrant and there seems a lot of value in it. Old people are sent to old people’s homes and are often seen almost like a waste of society and getting old is less of an achievement and more like an economic burden…
However not so long ago, getting old was not something everyone had the privilege to achieve and those who did were the most respected members of society. They were those who carried the wisdom, knowledge and experience necessary to get along in this world.
We don’t know for sure, when that shift happened, but most likely the availability of written language and books had a major impact. And the internet and artificial intelligence are now seemingly sealing the coffin.
So it is now more important than ever to start looking at what we might be loosing. There’s a certain way an Elder looks at their community, a certain way to watch over everyday life, how decisions are being made, children are growing up and directions are being taken. Elders come from a calmer place, because they look at it with experience and perspective. They’ve seen so much more, tried so many things, experienced so much failure as well as success.
Of course not everyone with a certain age has actually gained wisdom over their lifetime. Some people have not done a lot of different things, but just one thing over and over again. And then here are also those people that have become bitter, ignorant, cynical and are not easy to listen to – even if they have a lot of wisdom to offer.
Because of all of this, it’s not always easy for young people to tell who’s an Elder and who is just old, if it’s even theirs to tell. But no matter which category they might fall into, all of them are witnesses of time passing, and how it has been in the past, compared to today. And this is a value in and of itself.
Elders also often take up the role as grandparents. They’re not busy any more working and earning money in order to feed and clothe the children. Maybe we can even remember from our own childhood how they had time and space for things our parents didn’t.
It’s however also important to note, that they’re not just cheap babysitters. They can take a closer look, read between the lines and can estimate where things are going, guide us on questions we never asked. We can ask the AI all those specific questions, but how about the things we don’t even anticipate? Elders can guide us way better, more appropriate – without clear straight answers from a computer, but more patiently, more suitably for us as human beings.
It’s on us, especially if we want to build community, to remember to go ask those who have all this life experience.
In the Wild Moon immersion we build a small community – at least for a short amount of time – and we always feel very honored to have Elders with us in our group. It’s not like they need to take on big responsibility, it’s simply the energy they bring, that makes a difference and enhances the experience for the group.
If we actively honor their role, give them the much needed respect and most importantly the appreciation for what they bring, we’ll in return get a complete, wholesome community. Last but not least, when we learn to see Elders as role models again, it can give us all something to look forward to in our lives, as we can hope to still have a role in society when we are older.
