Aging is not all that it's cracked up to be...

I thought I had alot to look forward to in retirement....sleeping in, doing whatever I wanted whenever I wanted to do it, take off for the mountains or the oceanside....kind of being on permanent vacation.

That was until I read the first four chapters in our book. Now I am a bit depressed about getting older. It appears Western society (ie. the U.S.!) is about the only society that looks down on its elders as past their prime...

I must admit that in my youth, I used to think about how my view of the aged did tend to fit into some of the stereotypes presented in the book (they are all alike, they are isolated, they are all in poor health) until I started getting towards that end of the aging spectrum. Now I think the opposite--they are not all alike, they are only isolated if they want to be and they are all certainly not in poor health. Many are probably more fit than I!

Clearly I need to take measures to make sure I am not living alone in my older years - they apparently are the worst off, with research showing those living alone are the most unhappy, depressed and dissatisfied with life. I need to get my wife to read this and get onboard pronto!

I sure hope the next chapters show the upside of the "golden years." I could use some encouragement.