Older people have increased benefit priorities. The long time in life creates better chances of investments, which can not be made by young people. The old are involved in many income generating activities and practices through out their aging process, which they enjoy later. They enjoy the early investments. The society has favor for the old. In public the old are always excused and given priorities No one can hold them responsible for their mistakes, as they are either considered to do the right, or the mistake is associated with poor memory.
Many people complain of getting old. They prefer spending everything they own to remain young. They hold a negative attitude toward aging. Although aging is natural, with very little man’s effort to limit the process, many people have been spending their money and time to ensure that the process is gradual with a slow pace, and hide the signs of getting old from the public. They do not want to be associated with old people ( Lakin 2007, pp. 283). Getting old is associated with pains and aches, especially the joints.
As the individual gets old the flexibility of body muscles,and the joints is lost, causing pain and aches when moving. The process interferes with various human sense making the old people to use artificial devices improve the senses. The changes in the functioning of eyes reduces the ability to see, making most of the old and elderly people to use glasses. Although there are old people who can see, the sight is limited to large and near objects, requiring them to use glasses to view small, and far objects.
Thats the reason why most old people will walk and stay without glasses but when they are reading, they use glasses. Aging process interferes with the distribution of hair. After birth, the hair develops in the head, gaining fair distribution as the child develops. The adults have evenly distributed hair, but as the aging process progresses the hair distributions is reduce, making the top of the head to have no or little hair, with more hair on the head regions near the ears. In most cases the entire head looses hair making old people to have a bald.
Many old people, who do not like to be seen old, buy artificial hair, especially old women, while the old men uses hats and caps to cover the head. Infants are born without teeth, but as they develop teeth develop to for a unique formula in every individual. Teeth develop gradually in human beings to a total of thirty two. Each individual has a distinct dental formula which is many people in various culture considers to be source of beauty and attractiveness. As people get old, number of teeth decrease gradually, such that by the time the individuals are in their late adulthood, they have very few (if any) left.
This makes people to hate getting old. They argue that getting old reduces individual’s attractiveness and beauty. As individuals’ age advances they get more respected the society, and their job position is promoted. They enjoy increased salaries, but their working time continue to reduce. At certain age -depending on countries they retire. Those who rely on the work to provide income and to finance everything required for good living, start having financial problems.
Although some employer and organizations offers retirement benefits, they are used in the first few years of retirement, leaving the rest of the individual’s life with little or no money. Old and age people who do not have other sources of getting money to sustain independent living end up in nursing homes, and departing with their spouses ( Casey and Atsuhiro 2002, pp. 68). Many People do not like getting old. Conclusion Getting old is natural. It is only very little that can slow the process, but nothing can be done against the nature to stop people from getting old.
People in various cultures have varying attitude towards getting old. Those with positive attitude view the process of getting old as a link, which connects them to respect, wisdom, knowledge, experience, and pride. They consider getting old to have many benefits which can not be enjoyed in the alternative. These people believe in nature. On the other hand some cultures consider getting old to have negative consequences They do not like to get old, and uses resources in efforts to stop the process, so that they can continually look young.
Since it is hard to change nature, these people use all means to hide physical signs of getting old or old age. They forget not all signs can be hidden -psychological and internal changes cannot be hidden.
References:
Casey, Bernard and Atsuhiro, Yamada. ”Getting older, getting poorer ”. Boston: SAGE 2002 Crimmins, Eileen and Yasuhiko Saito. ”Getting better and getting worse”. Aging and Health, 5. 1,(1993): 10-36 Lakin, Rita. ”Getting old is criminal”. New York: Dell, 2007 Sternberg, Robert. ”Wisdom’s nature, origins, and development”. Cambridge: Cambridge University, 1990