Old age isn’t relevant anymore

Adolescence tends for maximalism. “Live fast, die young” ― such sort of things. And those who decided to live longer suddenly realize that being old isn’t so bad. Just wait until your children are self-sufficient and you’ll finally be able to… what? Ride public transport at 7 a.m.? Sit at a state clinic at 8? Nonsense! Modern grandmas use online recipes to bake buns in a multicooker in between massage sessions and creative activities.

Things you couldn’t do earlier due to lack of time are now available. In youth your opportunities were limited, but you wanted everything at once. You enrolled into some sort of an education establishment (if you could), went to unappealing work just because “everyone does it”. You couldn’t afford leaving everything and getting a second higher education ― children are growing and require financial support. 

In the Western Europe, USA, and now in Russia as well, there are universities for the third age. They are organized under the aegis of higher education establishments and offer internal or online courses in a wide variety of fields: history, culture, philosophy, psychology, economics, natural science (physics, chemistry), first aid courses, nursery, healthy lifestyle, information technologies and many other…

In Europe, the USA and Russia there are universities for the third age, photo WEB

The courses are usually free of charge and educational materials are comparable to those for younger students. Older people are glad to use this opportunity to discover the unknown inner potential. Eagerness to learn new things prolongs their active period of life and indefinitely postpones “being old”. 

As a rule, relatives lack time to explain how electronic devices work. You have to repeat things dozens of time and show everything… It is rather time-consuming and time is precious! Anyway, why would the old ones need IT literacy? Well, here are several reasons:

• To be aware of breaking news.
• To learn how to use Skype. It is cheap and lets you see your interlocutor.
• Watch film and TV series.
• Obtain information (cooking recipes, recommendations for plant and animal care, knitting schemes, cosmetic procedures, etc.);
• Communicate on thematic forums.

In Europe, the USA and Russia there are universities for the third age, photo WEB

It’s fairly easy to find more reasons ― even games, which develop cognition and logic, writing personal diaries and memoirs… But the main objective is to gain free choice and self-sufficiency, which is crucial for elder people. When they were young, their time was consumed by dancing, then ― parties, then they had absolutely no time for nothing but daily duties. Now they finally have time for spiritual development.

Elderly dames and sirs look especially well-dressed in such establishments. Younger generations pay less attention to their attire, while their attitude is more casual. And for that you can regularly hear something like “They don’t understand anything nowadays, when I was young…”

New friends and people to talk can be even more important than the training sessions, photo WEB

Limited mobility and joint pain start troubling us as early as in 30s. But we have no time for sports. When we become older it suddenly dawns on us that keeping fit is extremely important. Yoga and fitness sessions held in special groups solve more problems than it seems at the first glance.

1. Improve muscle tonus;
2. Bring back flexibility and mobility of joints;
3. Stimulate respiratory system;
4. Normalize heart function;
5. Enhance gastrointestinal processes; 
6. Improve mood.

Meeting new people and having someone to talk to is equally important as the training sessions. The older clients also appreciate saunas and swimming pools. During the day you can easily spot a group of elderly ladies there. You can’t have rest when children or grandchildren are rushing to attractions, then dive into and drink sea water, then get sick after eating an ice-cream. It’s continuous stress, not vacations.

So it appears that you can have decent serene rest only when you are about 60. Remember, how you wanted to walk beside your husband along the sandy shoreline, to marvel at the sunset, to feed seagulls? Hooray! The time has come. If you put it like this, the life only starts after 50. You have money, wisdom, confidence ― and no problems with career, education or children. That’s no use to fear growing old. We’ll do just what we want to do, just a little bit slower. Although much more thoroughly.

Victoria Romanova, Moscow, Russia

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