Importance of Elderly People

Like old is gold, elders are very important for us, our family, and the whole society. Our family life is based on our elders’ lives. Basically, we are dependent on our elders for our survival. All our needs are fulfilled with love and care by our elders. We can make our lives from good to best by giving due respect to our elders.

Growing and ageing is a natural process that all individuals experience. Nobody is born elderly, all of us were born as infants. Gradually, everyone goes through different life experiences of different roles of a child, then a young adult, then an older adult, and finally an elder one. All of these roles are very demanding in themselves and provide different experiences for an individual.

Elders are very precious to their children, like the roots of a tree. They have a lifetime experience in different fields of life. They can solve family disputes in a wise way. The most important point is that they are thdrivingng force for the whole family. They are the centre of family, children feel safe and secure in the presence of parents and found no alternate of them anywhere.   

Elders are associated with us with blood relations. In this case, we have a loving relationship with them. In most of the cases, normally we live in joint families. A new trend is in practice is nuclear family system, where after marriage children start their new families. Both systems have positive and negative points.

 In our Asian culture, joint families are mostly present, but in western culture, nuclear families are found in majority of the cases. The main reason behind it is their economic conditions, all family members have to do some work. Their elderly members, who need care, have to live in old- homes. Living in these homes has both pros and cons.

Elders in old homes have to leave their loved ones and their care have to depend on unknown ones (especially in the initial days) and have to wait for their own people for days, or weeks. On the other hand, when they live with their own children, who are working, they became alone and helpless. In old homes, trained nurses and workers take a good care of them. with the passage of time elder people form their bonds and settled with them with time.

The main thing is humanity, that requires a positive attitude towards each other. There must be a close bond between parents and children. Then they can decide to live in a joint family or live separately as nuclear family. This will be settled in an amicable and positive way. Love and care must remain the main elemelementsthese relation, that is the real charm of these relations.