New Seniors

When I was a kid, people took care of their aging parents, even older family members like aunts and uncles.  There was always a place for them to sleep and another chair could be pulled up to the dining room table.  They were family, so you shared what you had with them.  Of course, that was a simpler time; moms were housewives, dad brought home the bacon, and everyone chipped in as best they could.

Through the Second World War and for a while after it ended, my family had a number of adults living under the same roof.  My grand parents and an aunt were there.  She later married, and her new husband joined us for a couple of years until there were able to get a home of their own.  My grandparents remained and were still living with my folks when I went away to college.  This did not seem unusual to me, since I had other pre-boomers friends with similar living arrangements.

In fact, I rather liked having these adults around.  There was always a man around the house and each of them taught me something different than the others.  I don’t mean conflicting lessons; I’m talking about learning a variety of things.  My dad did what dad’s do; he taught me the basics and tried to be as involved in my life as I would let him.  My grandfather grew up on a farm; so he took me fishing, hunting, horseback riding and other outdoorsy things.  And my aunt’s husband was an engineer who showed me how to solve math problems as well as to enjoy classical music.  I was a lucky guy. 

With families going their individual ways and living across town, across the state, or across the nation; it’s a bit more difficult to keep people together or to accommodate a move back home.  Add to this the fact that two income families are the rule rather than the exception, and the multi-generational family does not seem realistic. 

Today, grandparents, who can no longer take care of their homes, end up in senior living facilities.  It happened with my parents, but at least they were able to move from the east coast to Los Angeles when they decided to get rid of their home.  What sold them on coming out here was being able to see the grandchildren and the great grandchildren, all living in the LA area, whom they had spent time with in recent years.  While we were not under the same roof, we saw my parents regularly for the last several years of their lives.  It was wonderful.

I know this made my parents’ lives happier and believe it extended their time on earth.  The generations interacting together proved beneficial for everyone.  As we pre-boomers grow older, it’s important to spend more time with family.  We need to make our children aware of this and work out a way to make it happen.  Not to be a burden for anyone, but to bring joy to us all.

You must be logged in to post a comment.