Trials of the aged
Aging has its perks, as I talked about last time, as well as its unpleasant side effects. But though my experience has, thankfully, been more annoying than difficult, I want to acknowledge in this series that for some, their later years are filled with pain, heartbreak, struggle, and/or loneliness.
For many, senior citizenship is less about discounts than it is about doctor visits and pill boxes. For many, later life means grieving the loss of a spouse, and sometimes outliving a child. Dwindling financial resources can bring worry and stress. And those who end up living alone may find themselves longing for companionship.
None of these has been my experience . . . yet. But they are the very normal trials of both men and women in their senior years, and I should not expect to be spared all of them.
Yet I have four children who love me who I know will be there for me if I outlive their father. Or for him if he outlives me. Children are a blessing in many ways and having someone to help in your old age is absolutely one of them. My many siblings and I coordinated to help our widowed mom when she was having health issues and I remember saying to her with a smile as I put on her shoes, “Aren’t you glad now that you had so many kids?”
My parents wanted a large family and the reason we didn’t hesitate to meet Mom’s needs in her senior years is because we were raised well and knew we were loved. The family is society’s most fundamental institution and primary difference-maker. Children raised in an intact family with love and discipline are generally happier, do better in school, are more successful and less inclined to criminality than those growing up in dysfunctional or fatherless families. Most of the ills besetting our nation today – rampant crime, low reading proficiency, welfare dependence, abortion, gender ideology, angry mobs mindlessly protesting supposed evils by hypocritically spewing and demonstrating the very hate they are decrying – would be greatly mitigated if we as a society prioritized, promoted, and supported strong families.
So because my children were also raised well and know they are loved, I can face old age with the security a loving family provides.
Young people . . . even if your elderly parent is difficult or demanding, you have an obligation to support and care for them as their body weakens, their self-sufficiency wanes, and their dependency gains.
I’ll close again with God’s word on the subject.
If a widow has children or grandchildren, let them first learn to show godliness to their own household and to make some return to their parents, for this is pleasing in the sight of God. – 1 Timothy 5:4
Listen to your father who gave you life, and do not despise your mother when she is old. -Proverbs 23:22
“Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise), “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.” – Ephesians 6:2-3
