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This article is called Understanding Senior Citizens. This is a different kind of article than I normally write. I am going to be serious in this article but I hope to have a little fun with it. It is a very rare thing for me to write anything about me in my articles but I will in this one. I have to start out by saying, I am old, I am elderly and I am a senior citizen. That also means I am stubborn and hard-headed. I freely admit that. Here is a little history about me.

MY FAMILY

I have 2 fine grown children a son and daughter. My son Edgar, ah Walter, no, Ralph, wait, No his name is Tony. That’s it, Tony. (Sorry I had a senior moment). Now Tony watches out for me and does not want me to get hurt or injured. If I wobble he will grab my arm to make sure I do not fall, and he does certain things here at home for me, that he does not want me attempting. Tony has done all the repairs at my house, especially all the work on the outside including building a deck and concreting my large driveway. He is now running his own construction business.

I realize there are things that I am no longer physically able to do. I LOVE HIM AND APPRECIATE HIM FOR THAT. Tony tells me that I could give “STUBBORN LESSONS TO MULES.”  He cares about my health and watches out for me. I also love and appreciate his daughter (my granddaughter), Abigal, no that is not right, it is Alyssa. (Another senior moment). She tries to help me out when she is here, she sees my limitations also.

My daughter Amanda, sorry I meant April, is a different critter. She has a different approach to my health. I would call her a health nut. She wants to put me on a “REGIMEN” of vitamins and healthy foods. She thinks I should be eating all of the “GREEN STUFF” like Spinach, Carrots, Broccoli, Green Peas, Asparagus, and others. I cannot stand any of those and we argue about it. I would CHOCK AND PUKE trying to eat them. There is not enough RANCH DRESSING in my entire city to cover the taste of those. YUCK. I am truly happy if she eats them every day and stays on her regimen of vitamins. I am a meat and potatoes kinda guy. So we do argue more and disagree about my health.

April is also an affiliate of Natures Frequencies Health and sells their products. She runs her own business. She believes these products are better than anything on the pharmacy shelves and she and I discuss the products.. I also know she loves me, cares about me, and worries about me. The real problem is that I am “old school.”

Being older I have learned to use “MY GREAT BRAIN’ rather than my back or hurting myself. Right now I have a task to perform. My window air-conditioner quit and did not work this year, IT IS DEAD. It sits over my bed. It is winter here now, and I feel lots of cold air coming in around it. That is not good for me staying warm or my heating bill. I am going to open that window and just push it out onto the ground. I mean it cannot hurt anything, it no longer works. I will not try and lug and tug it out of the window, then drag it through the house. Why would I hurt myself doing that? SEE, Seniors still have a brain.

UPDATE: 2 DAYS LATER. Today I put my plan into action. I managed to CHUNK  the air-conditioner out the window. It was only 10 feet to the ground. I miscalculated a little. It hit the ground then wanted to roll. It was heading straight for the driveway. Luckily it did not make it that far. So I got to go out in the rain and cold and lug it back up the hill. I only had a few pieces to pick up. I think my great brain failed me this time. MY SON IS NOT GOING TO BE HAPPY WITH ME, I am cold and going to bed now.

PRECIOUS MEMORIES HOW THEY LINGER

Neither of my kids were ever compliant but both were “DEFIANT.” (April is older and taught it to Tony, just to get even with me). April did not like going to bed or getting up to go to school. That was always a war zone trying to get her up and screaming 40 times, “GET UP YOU ARE GOING TO MISS THE SCHOOL BUS. Then I tried another approach. I put a large boom box radio in her room and turned it up, full blast. Now, she would have to get up to turn it off. That did not work, she just covered her head with the pillow and scream, TURN IT OFF, TURN IT OFF. (SHE TAUGHT TONY THAT ALSO). That was the modern-day equivalent of the walking dead. ” I remember well, her telling me, “I CANNOT WAIT UNTIL I AM ALL GROWN UP SO I CAN PUT YOU IN AN OLE FOLKS HOME, THEN THEY WILL MAKE YOU GO TO BED AT 9:30. HUMMMM, I would welcome that now.

I am NOT on any MEDICATIONS and never have been. I believe the more you stay away from the doctors the better off you will be. If I ever go to the emergency room then my family knows something is very badly wrong with me. 10 YEAR AGO I had to go to the emergency room. When the Doctor finally came in,  he said, we had to go to the archives to find your medical record. Do you know you have not been here in 20 years? I said YES, and it should have been longer, but that is just me.

LANGUAGE AND LABELS

I think language and labels come from and become a classification of who a person is, and what they can do. Some are positive and some are negative. I have written a lot in my articles here on my website, about Political Correctness (PC). It is evident,  that PC does not apply to the old, aged, or elderly. “we just don’t care.” Many of the names they throw out are explicitly insulting. That is ok with me because I have a “thick skin”. And just because they say it, does not make it so. If people like to talk about the good, the bad, and the elderly, then go for it.  I do not mind being called a “SENIOR” that is what gets my discounts.

WELL MEANING ADVICE

Opinions are like noses, everybody has one. (That was the nice version of the quote). Some advice is beneficial and some is not. I made this mistake recently. My good friend Debbie had a birthday. I called and left her a message saying, “Happy 60th birthday” She called back raising mortal hell declaring that she was NOT 60 years old. Now she is really upset and thinks I insulted her. When we got off the phone I did some thinking and re-calculated (without a calculator, or without taking my shoes off to count-I was really proud of myself).

I called her back and apologized. I informed her that I had made a mistake, that she was NOT 60 years old. Then I informed her that she was really 61 years old. (O L E – B O Y).  Even I could hear every word she was saying. My hearing is very bad, the doctor said there is nothing they can do (I was tested–because of nerve damage in the inner ears). I just wanted to correct my mistake and be a blessing to her. Then to make her feel better, I reminded her how she went totally wild the day she turned 40 and thought her world had ended. (OVER THE HILL). There is a lot of truth in the statement that there are some things you do not say to women. There are consequences for doing it.

Then there is my friend Lyn. She just turned 60 a few days ago and said, “I am a Senior now.”  It was almost like she was pronouncing a death sentence upon herself.” So the magic age of 60 now made her a Senior. Just Kidding. No the truth about Lyn is this. She worked hard her whole life then was screwed out of her RETIREMENT that she earned. 60 is the magic age at which she should be able to retire but she cannot-and that breaks my heart. I know she is suffering from some health issues and I worry about her a lot. We are both looking for the Lord to come soon and take us home in the Rapture and God has an eternal retirement plan for us. We have had regular Bible study for over 7 years.

INDEPENDENCE VERSES INJURY

“I CAN STILL DO THAT.YEAH, RIGHT. I am not crippled you know. Have you ever seen a Senior citizen jump up and start dancing to the old Rock and Roll Music? I do not think their moves are like it was when they were teenagers, Now that was funny. What makes Seniors have this attitude? We are used to being independent and we have always taken care of ourselves. We were raised with a work ethic to be independent. Seniors really do see someone different when they look in the mirror. They see a person who has always done for themselves without having to ask for help unless it is necessary. My generation has to weigh the risk of injury against independence. That is a human trait. This may be the reason my son Tony, took most of my tools for a long time, HE WAS AFRAID I WOULD USE THEM.

Other Seniors use their brains to benefit themselves. For example, Seniors save things for use at a later time. You would be surprised at the valuable things people put in the trash. One man’s trash is another man’s treasure. Seniors are often criticized for having old furniture and belongings. The younger generation does not understand the value of “ANTIQUES.” Other Seniors who were swimmers in younger years, now have an aversion to water, like showers and baths. Being on fixed income forces them to save money on water bills that are high. SENIORS UNDERSTAND THE VALUE OF A DOLLAR.

Many Seniors live alone with no family that cares about them or visits, their “USEFULNESS” to family has worn out. Many of these Seniors love and cling on to their pets. Just a one of my female friends has said, “NO ONE ON EARTH LOVES ME EXCEPT MY DOGS, AND I WILL GO HUNGRY BEFORE MY DOGS GO HUNGRY.” You see, a dog loves you more than it loves itself. The loss of a pet hurts just as much as a family member to most Seniors. It is the love and dedication of the pet to you, that makes it such a great loss, especially Seniors.

I remember years ago when my daughter was young, I had a great German Shepherd, she was loving and gentle to everyone. My daughter had some boy come up to our house to pick her up for a date. The boy came and she was not ready yet, so I stood outside talking to him. My dog came up (being friendly) and sniffed him, the dog never touched him. He went to kick my dog and I stopped him. I immediately put his “ASS” down my driveway and told him do not come back. He asked why? I told him, “MY DOG LIVES HERE AND IS PART OF THE FAMILY, YOU ARE NOT.” My daughter was upset with me because I ran him off. I told her if he will do that too the dog, what would he do to you? I believe God gives us animals for a good reason (especially to Seniors and children).

SENIOR MOMENTS

This is a special designation for the sudden loss of memory, which is generally short term. Thus we can say, “I am having a senior moment.”Like, where did I put the car keys?” Then you find them in the refrigerator eventually? Or, “I just forgot what it was, I was going to tell you?” Or, “They forget a relative’s name.” And the best one is, “They forget that they have forgotten.” Some doctors think this may be the start of developing Dementia, but that has not been proven. I find more and more young people saying, “I just had a senior moment. So what else are you going to blame us for?

NOW HERE IS A CLASSIC SENIOR MOMENT FOR YOU

It almost tickled as his fingers started at her neck, and then began moving down past the small of her back. He then caressed her shoulders and neck, slowly worked his hand down, stopping just over her stomach.

He then proceeded to place his hand on her left inner arm, working down her side, passing gently over her buttock and down her leg to her calf. Then, he proceeded up her thigh, stopping just at the uppermost portion of her leg. He continued in the same manner on her right side, then suddenly stopped, rolled over and became silent.

As she had become quite aroused by this caressing, and proceeded to ask in a loving voice,

‘Honey that was wonderful. Why did you stop?’

My kids tell me that I have a better memory than they do. GOD HAS BLESSED ME WITH THAT. 12 years ago in 2008, I quit watching television completely. I have not had a television since 2008 and do not miss it. I have 2 websites and my own private Christian Chatroom that keeps me busy. In addition I still have Bible Study and teach the Bible online. Here is my opinion: The more you stay away from doctors and medications, the better off you will be. I take no prescription drugs and never have. If you will honor God and His Word, then God will honor you.

THE REALITY OF AGING

This is not something that everyone wants to discuss, but one-day reality does set in. The day does come when old age and physical conditions greatly affect you and your ability to function. Your mind is willing but your body does not respond the way it use too. Then there are other Seniors who have a fine body but their mind deteriorates. More elderly are now put away in nursing homes and health care facilities than any other time in history. And being fair, what person of my generation, wants to be a burden on the family? Most Seniors have a lifetime of knowledge and experience that needs to be shared. Many Seniors dwell or live in the past because it was their best days. It was the days when they were most productive in their lives and they felt most valuable.

Here is the really sad part of this article. Due to the recent so-called Coronavirus Pandemic, many new terms have come into play. In America, the term that prevailed is called “NON-ESSENTIAL.” It was left up to Governors of each state to decide what businesses or services were non-essential. Millions of small businesses went out of business.

As you would expect, ALL CHURCHES WERE CLASSIFIED AS NON-ESSENTIAL BUSINESSES. In essence Morality in our nation and society IS NOT important or essential. Immorality is important and IS essential. This concept carries over to the people especially the Old, the Seniors, and the Elderly. “WE WHO HELPED BUILD THIS NATION, ARE NOW NON-ESSENTIAL” Our worth and value no longer exist. 

CONCLUSION

I have seen a lot of changes in my lifetime. We, Seniors, do talk and reminisce, about “THE GOOD OLE DAYS” What a different world we live in today. Those were easier days when “RESPECT” meant something, especially concerning the Elderly. What you got, you worked for and earned. We did not ask for handouts or government support,  there was no free health care or free housing. You grew your own food and there were no food stamp programs. We used outdoor toilets, oil lamps, and did not have electricity for many years. Only the rich people, had a black and white television, but we did have a small radio.

When I was growing up your word was your bond and deals were made with a handshake. “IF YOUR WORD WAS NO GOOD THEN YOU WERE NO GOOD.” God, morals, values, ethics, the Bible, Christianity, and the Church was a necessity and a vital part of our life. “YOU EITHER HAD CHARACTER OR YOU WERE ONE.” And one thing that was Paramount was the fact that you “RESPECTED YOUR ELDERS.” If you did not, then you could lose your teeth quickly.                                                                                                       

I worked hard to teach these principles to my children. I am thankful for my children and my friends’ love and respect for me. And I give them the same love and respect back to them. My generation worked their whole life, looking for the day they could retire. We paid into the system our whole life for our Retirement.  Now Congress, Politicians, and our country want to steal, take away, or reduce what we worked for to retire.

There is a very large movement to get rid of us Seniors. WE ARE NON-ESSENTIAL TO SOCIETY NOW. It is called EUTHANASIA OR ASSISTED SUICIDE. It is already approved and used in different states. We are seen as nonproductive and need to be got rid of. After all, don’t you put down a dog when it becomes old and useless? Make room for the new generation. When your nation kills their unborn even after it is born, do you think they will have a problem getting rid of you? Jesus asked the people of his day this question: Matthew 12:12 “HOW MUCH BETTER IS A MAN THAN A SHEEP?” In our Progressive Society, the answer will be, there is no difference.”

God has a lot to say in the Bible, about the elderly and how they were to be treated and respected. God chose elders for ministry and leadership, because of their maturity. If you have lived in this new Progressive Society than you already know, they are trying to get rid of anything related to God, and that includes ALL Christians and Churches., worldwide. I am like the other elderly of my generation. I AM OLD, STUBBORN AND HARD HEADED AND I WILL NOT SUBMIT TO WHAT THEY WANT.

I have tried to show a little humor in this article and I get to make fun of us. We are allowed to do that and laugh at ourselves. That is different than disrespect, and being made to feel worthless.  Your thoughts, opinions, and comments are welcome here,  so leave them below. RAY