The Optimist
and the Pessimist Walk Into a Senior Centre...
Or: Why Growing
Old Beats, the Heck Out of the Alternative
Optimist: (bouncing in, coffee in hand) Good morning! Isn't it a beautiful day?
Pessimist: (gripping their coffee like a lifeline)
It's raining.
Optimist: It's refreshing! Besides, I heard
that phrase again yesterday, you know the one: "Growing old is a privilege
denied to many." It's true, isn't it?
Pessimist: (sighs) You and that phrase. I've
heard you say it a hundred times.
Optimist: That's because it's true a hundred times!
My knees hurt, my back complains, I can't remember where I put my glasses, and I'm
still happier than I was at forty.
Pessimist: You're ten years younger than me. You
haven't seen the really good stuff yet. Just wait.
Optimist: I've been waiting for twenty years! And
what I've learned is that perspective is the one thing youth just cannot buy. A
man in his forties said it perfectly: "You understand a little more, you get
wiser as you age."
Pessimist: A man in his forties is a child. What
does he know?
Optimist: More than we did at forty, that's for
sure. And a woman in her nineties, her nineties!, said, "It can be good if
you have the right attitude." She accepts her limitations and still cherishes
each day. She's got about thirty years on you, and she's not complaining.
Pessimist: I'm not complaining. I'm being realistic.
Health deteriorates. Memory deteriorates. The ability to do things deteriorates.
A man in his fifties said exactly that.
Optimist: I love that you remember that quote. Maybe
your memory isn't as bad as you think. But seriously, I'd rather be a slower-moving,
sometimes-forgetful, creaky-kneed optimist than a thirty-year-old pessimist who
thinks he has it all figured out.
Pessimist: Fine. So what's your brilliant plan for
dealing with all this "deterioration"?
Optimist: I'll tell you. But first, let me ask you
something. When National Geographic asked people what they worry about most in the
second half of life, do you know what the top three were?
Pessimist: Let me guess. Money.
Optimist: Nope.
Pessimist: Health?
Optimist: Sort of. Brain health came first, 54%
of people said that's their biggest concern. Maintaining independence was second
at 53%. And relationships were third at 50%.
Pessimist: See? I was right. Health and independence.
It's all downhill from here.
Optimist: Or, and hear me out, we could focus on
what we can do rather than what we can't. We can keep our minds sharp.
We can stay independent longer. We can build relationships that matter. Aging is
not a problem to be solved. It's a chapter to be lived.
Pessimist: (sighs again) You always see the
glass half full.
Optimist: The glass is half full of coffee. And
it's still warm. That's a win in my book.
Pessimist: (almost smiling) You know, you're
exhausting.
Optimist: I'll take that as a compliment. So, are
you coming to the chair yoga class later, or are you going to sit here and complain
about your knees?
Pessimist: I don't do chair yoga.
Optimist: You will. I bought you a spot. It's a
gift.
Pessimist: I don't accept gifts from optimists. They
always come with strings attached.
Optimist: The string is that you have to show up
and try not to enjoy it.
Pessimist: (grumbling) I suppose I could try
it. Once.
Optimist: That's the spirit! One class, one laugh,
one stubborn refusal to give in to the gloom. You're practically a convert already.
Pessimist: Don't push it.
Optimist: Wouldn't dream of it. But just so you
know, I'm going to keep reminding you that growing old is a privilege. Not because
it's easy. Because it means we're still here. And as long as we're still here, we
can still choose how we live.
Pessimist: (muttering) I'll bring my own coffee.
Optimist: I knew you'd come around. Took you thirty
years, but I knew you'd come around.
If you are reading
this and you are the pessimist in your own life, take heart. The optimist is not
ignoring reality. They are choosing to see it differently.
Aging is not a
problem to be solved. It is a chapter to be lived. And the best part? You get to
choose what kind of older person you want to become. The aches? They are temporary.
The wisdom? That is permanent. And every birthday is a reminder that you still have
time to learn, to love, and to laugh, usually at yourself.
Now go find your
own optimist. Or be one. The coffee is always better that way
No comments:
Post a Comment