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Ashton Applewhite hates the way we talk about people over
fifty. Specifically, she hates “the elderly” and “seniors,”
as well as “elders” because those terms have generally bad
connotations. Instead, she suggests we change our language
to “olders,” because the word “emphasizes that age is a
continuum.”
Aging, you see, is what she knows – not just because she’s
sixty-something, but because she writes about the subject.
She knows there are lots of myths about aging, and that the
truth is better than we think.
A mere three percent of Americans over age 65 live in
nursing homes, for one, and most of them “can think just
fine,” which means they don’t have any problems with
dementia. Most olders, in fact, remain active, independent,
and enjoy fashion, dating, sex and travel. To think
differently is indulging in ageism.
Once you know how to spot ageism, Applewhite says, you can
combat it.
Forgetting that olders are still consumers is ageism.
Howling that near-retirement-age employees take jobs from
younger workers is ridiculous – and ageism. Getting shamed
for needing a wheelchair is ageism. Being scolded for
wearing something you love but that someone has decided is
“too young for you”… ageism. Absolutely.
Furthermore, says Applewhite, your brain is probably fine;
cognition declines to a certain extent in older years, but
aging enhances thought processes and besides, younger people
forget things, too. You can keep your brain sharp by working
your body.
Remember that “aging is not a disease,” and you shouldn’t be
ashamed of it because “Sixty isn’t the new forty, but it is
a new sixty.”
Oh, and those aches…? You shovel, you garden, you walk, you
dance. Maybe the aches came from living.
Your next birthday is arriving soon, and you’re not sure
whether to dread it, admit to it, or lie about it. You’re
not sure what to think, but after reading This
Chair Rocks, you’ll know exactly.
Author Ashton Applewhite is, as you can imagine, a proponent
of embracing your years, an action that she shows is
beneficial in many ways for both quality of life and
longevity. Those are happy words for the person who seizes
their existence and wrings every ounce from it. They’re a
shout-out to anyone who uses a hearing aid or wheelchair
without embarrassment, and a comfort to those who struggle
to ignore the “shouldas” that other people fling. They’re
advising words of the MYOB sort: enjoy your years because
whose business is it what you do?
That’s counsel that could turn your thinking around, or it
could make a great 50th Birthday gift to someone
with dread on their mind. This Chair Rocks proves
that getting older is icing on the cake.
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