older ... and wiser?

there has been a tendency in recent decades
to minimize the value of the older generation
and extol the virtues of the youth

perhaps the rapid increase in the rate of development
especially technologically
has engendered this development
but the upshot of it is
we relegate the elders
to the armchair and the 'old people's home'
   at an increasingly younger age
and often diss the cumulative value of their experience and insight

when this happens
we lose a valuable part of our society as a whole
for vast wisdom
   through experience
is dismissed as irrelevant

this is dangerous
and ruinous

it also reflects a thankless attitude towards those who have gone before
who have helped to pave the path we now tread

it is anti-community

someone once said
those who forget (dismiss?) their history
   are doomed to repeat it
part of history is the eldership
   the people up ahead

....

while the older people may not be as advanced as the youth
   in terms of technological advancement
their journeys are part of the created society in which we live
and their stories are invaluable to understanding the root of the issues we face today

and in that there is wisdom as to how to move ahead
with an enlightened worldview
looking back to what (and who) went before
and gauging the future from a past-perspective
adjusting
correcting
inventing
as we go

so be not quick to treat the older generation as useless
unneeded
out-of-date

remember
while knowledge is beneficial
experience counts for much too

while the GPS may direct you on the route
someone who has walked that road before
can provide valuable insight the GPS can't

shalom