Friday, December 7, 2012

Caring,but not all that much...(sigh)


This really is an aspect of aging:  decreased caring.  

Have you noticed that?  We don't always say, "Frankly, I don't give a damn, Scarlett" because we sometimes don't even care enough to verbalize our less intense feelings. 

 Don't beat yourself up if you find yourself not caring as much, or if other old folks don't seem to care as much.  It could be normal.   
Or not, if mental health or abuse has brought about that state.  In which case you or others should get some help because help is available......and I am not talking pharmaceuticals!  I'm talking therapy.

But the reasonably healthy aging person has some "decreased caring" since we are less intense as a rule.  We give up on a lot of things and even wonder why we once cared so much.  

 Decreased caring is not always a bad thing!  As a child, I found old people to be less threatening, less reactive, more emotionally supportive, more accepting, and only weakly judgmental.  

Old folks often taught us when we were young that we sometimes cared too much about things that didn't really matter....or cared WAY too much about things that really did matter.  

Remember those little insights from the slow old people who helped you be less embarrassed and less shattered by life experiences?  

Every young person needs an old person.  
Not only are we oldies-but-goodies helpful, but we are easier to dismiss than the strongly opinionated-strongly caring adults!  
That's a plus to the young, I would say.

As children, we needed the old folks to "balance" the playing field.....to MAKE IT ALL MORE NORMAL!!

Good grief!  Write long enough and you finally find normal right under your nose!
"I'm normal!  I'm normal."

Caring, in a wafty sort of way,
Riverwatch
PS  I do thank you sincerely for dropping in today