Senior Moments of Clarity and Wisdom

          Being smarter than when I was younger is one of the main things I like about getting older. All those life experiences, both positive and negative, have helped to create a mantle of wisdom and clarity. Sure, these qualities are not only associated with seniors, but younger people, in general, have fewer real life events from which to learn. I do admit there's no one who can be more compassionate and supportive than a spouse or a parent, whether they're a senior or not.

It's not all about me?????

          When I was in my 20’s and 30’s (yeah, probably most of my 40’s and 50's too!) it was all about me. It wasn’t until I was older that I began to see the impact of my words and actions on others. That’s when the clarity and wisdom started to manifest itself in my life.

 

          I’m neither sage nor a guru, but I have more answers now, the kind of answers that speak the truth rather than try to show how smart I think I am. When I'm sharing my opinion or volunteering some uncalled for information, I try to visualize molasses oozing slowly out of a jar. I try to drag it out and let the content and manner in which I respond form more fully in my brain before spewing forth. Ideally, I question whether my opinion is called for at all!

          It’s not like I’m Oprah with a staff of editors and censors standing behind me monitoring what I say and how I speak. I’m thinking on the fly. It’s easy for me to contest myself with how quickly I can come up with a snazzy answer before anyone else. Very rarely, however, does clarity and wisdom show up in these situations. These days, especially now that I’m retired, it’s less important that I be first with the ‘correct’ answer or comment. Thankfully, there are no work situations for me that require a fast solution to one problem or another. But we do live in a sound bite world, so it’s easy to feel responding quickly is better than responding with forethought.