Some Things Improve With Age!

Kirkhaven held a "Celebration of our Elders" event this past week in recognition of National Nursing Home Week. I was asked to give a special honorary toast to kick-off our resident celebration.

In planning for my toast and words to our elders, it occurred to me that aging in general seems to get a bad rap. You know what I mean. The car we bought 10 years ago doesn't run as well as it once did and what is that strange rattling noise coming from under the hood. Those fresh plump grapes I just bought last week now are turning brown and soft. And oh yeah, don't get me started about my lower back and knee joints.

So what exactly was I going to say to these elders that would be appropriate for a celebration rather than a precursor to a doctor visit? Then I got an idea! There must be some things that improve with age. So I did some on-line research and it turns out this aging thing ain't all bad.

Under the category of Food & Drink I submit the following:

• Wine & Cheese- sure we all knew that


• Eggs- turns out the older eggs are the better eggs


• Beef- remember to cure and age your beef for the best taste


• Casseroles- I love lasagna, but it always tastes better later reheated


• Cookbooks- the best are always your grandmother's old recipes

Under the category of Nature:

• Fruit Trees- my dad would know that the more mature trees bear the best fruit
• Soil- it takes years to "warm your soil"
• Shade Trees- that century old elm is the most majestic of them all
• Compost- isn't worth a dime without mother-nature and time
• Bird's Song- didn't know this but the older birds have a sweeter, stronger tweet

Under the category of Tangible Items:

• Antiques- well of course these become more valuable over time


• Real-Estate- don't you wish you bought that piece of property 20 years ago
  
• Leather- it only gets better with age


• Classic Cars- what we wouldn't give to own our father's first automobile now


• Photo Albums- the older the picture the better the memory

Under the category of Relationships:

• Friends- the best friend is usually an old friend


• Grandchildren- if I knew grandchildren would be such fun I wouldn't have had kids
  
• Traditions- the older the tradition, the more meaningful


• Memories- they grow fonder over time
  
• Family- we grow closer and more appreciative as we grow older

Which brings me back to my "Celebration of Elders" toast. After sharing these tid-bits that improve with age, I raised my glass, as the elders and others in the room did the same, and saluted the top 10 benefits of aging under the category of Elders:

1. Vocabulary- we learn more words and how best to use them as we age
2. Common Sense- it doesn't come naturally, we learn it over time
3. Humor- it becomes more acute and important as we age
4. Emotional Stability- it takes time, but eventually we discover who we are
5. Perspective- the longer we live, the broader our outlook on life becomes
6. Resilience- we learn to handle whatever life gives us as time moves on
7. Acceptance- we don't sweat the little things and tolerate diversity as we age
8. Wisdom- the older we get the wiser we get
9. Faith- thank God our faith grows stronger as our years and fears grow longer
10. Soul- while our body might desert us, our soul remains with us forever

So here's to our Elders, may they age well and gracefully. SALUTE!