Are you an Elder, a Senior or Old?

Those were the days, my friend. We were young and gave no thought to growing old. As my generation grows older we still fight the idea that we are growing old. 

There is an attempt by many to change the way we refer to people of a certain age. Older, Elder, Senior, which label to you like? Some other terms for being old that I have heard are “Oldster”, “Vintage”, “Golden Ager”, “Third Ager”, “Older Adult”, “The Silent Generation”, “War Babies”, “Boomer”, “Seasoned Citizens”, “Autumnal”, “mid-century vintage”. I heard one person respond by saying, ‘I'm an"ibaallt", meaning "I've been living a long, long time.” Another person said, “I am xx years young.” and “I have been around a long time”

The problem with all of the above terms is they are labels and labels change and evolve, and once labels that were acceptable become negative. We use labels to help us identify those who are different than us. The issue is, of course, that we will all grow old. Using labels can be a form of ageism.  Some of us think ageism is not real or is not important. I have friends who say “Age is not important, it is just a number. Well, it is if you are in a comfortable position, but I know there are many out there who, because of their age, cannot get a good job, or have been fired because of their age.

I was talking to a younger person and they asked me how old I was, and I told them. They said, “Congratulations you should be proud”. I wondered for what, living, or for living for so long? Today, I am alive, I am healthy, that is a fact and that could change in a flash. The reason I am alive probably has to do more with genetics than what I have done or how I have lived. I wondered why anyone would be proud of being any age. If I was to ask a person who was 19, or 40 or 55, were they proud of their age, I think I would get a shocked look and no answer. All ages are equally valid. Unless we die young, we each go through all of them. There is nothing unique or special about a certain age compared to another.

Changing the words, we use to express age, will not make ageism go away, but it may help society overcome that prejudice, but it will be a slow process as our society is still in love with the idea of staying young.

When does old apply to you? I believe that being old means someone who is at least 10 years older than me. However, others may not hold that view. I like what Ronnie Bennett over at “Time Goes By”, said “Oh just stop it. Everyone, stop it. If you are asking the question about when being old “kicks in”, you're there.”

So I will leave you with a couple of question, now that “you are there”, what does that mean to you, and how do you refer to yourself?