Youth and the Elderly

Youth often perceive the elderly as quaintly "out there" somewhere; not really in the present. I have come to understand this to be partly true: The elderly have an incredible storehouse of life experiences stored in their minds--more past than future, from the worldly standpoint. The young frequently dismiss them because of this. This can be a form of unconscious condescension. And it is sad because the elderly also have an incredible storehouse of wisdom that they would love to share with the young but cannot do so because of that dismissive attitude.