Blogpost 6: Growing Old is Mandatory

In previous posts, I have already discussed about the number in the aspect of love, which is age, wherein two people are considered. In this post, I will be continuing to talk about age but age as a factor of another aspect of life as a factor of one’s life.

“Growing old is mandatory, growing up is optional” – Chili Davis. A friend sent me this quote early in the morning, just this weekend. And I immediately thought I am afraid to get old. I don’t want to see my skin sag, lose a tooth, and be a gray-haired old man. I’d rather die early, as long as I won’t see myself in that condition. But as I analyze this quotation, I came up with a conclusion. I told myself, “no matter how will I look, for as long as I have a youthful heart and mind, I would still be young, maybe not physically but emotionally”. Well, we can’t stop ageing, every year; one count is added to our age. And that’s basically it, when we stop ageing, then it means, we are already dead. But getting mature is completely a different thing.

How about you? Are you afraid to be getting old like me? If so, then most probably, you are under the condition which we call the Gerascophobia – the fear of getting old. People suffering from this condition are very stressed when aging or age is being talked about.

There is an article by Trevor Johnson entitled, “The Secret Causes of Gerascophobia Or Fear of Growing Old”. According to this article, though getting old is a common thing to all of us, there are still people who are afraid to get old. That’s strange, right? The fact that we are all is going to get old and eventually die. Also, Johnson stated that there are two possible reasons responsible for acquiring this fear.

Johnson said, “There could be two reasons for this fear. All the reasons are based from anxieties. One is the anxiety of being left alone. The next reason that people who has gerascophobia is lack of resources.”

The first reason, which is the anxiety of being left alone, is commonly happening to old people who are brought to nursing houses or home for the aged. Definitely, these people got depressed knowing the fact that they are not with their family anymore. Thus, people who are aware of that situation may feel that they’re going to experience the same thing and all of a sudden, they will develop that fear. 

The second reason came up to be a reason of being lack in resources. Basically, as you aged, the weaker you become. And so, you will not be able to work for yourself and your family as well, when you are weak. Thinking of being unable to support yourself and family needs, may have caused you this phobia. A common problem to most people is their pride. Having their pride as high as a mountain, may become one reason of acquiring this phobia. Because of that pride, even if the person’s already old, and unable to take care of him/herself anymore, means to them as other people’s burden, which adds up to the cause of having Gerascophobia.

Well, those reasons are perfectly true! The first one, the truth that we are distant from our families is really hard to accept. More so, if we are already old and less capable of getting back home. As a result, people who see this kind of situation may develop the fear of getting old. Yes, it may develop through observation, not only when you’re the one who’s left. On the other hand, the second reason is the greatest nightmare of the rich people – the lacking of resources. It is obvious that as we get older, our body loses its strength and became weak. As a result, we may not be able to work for ourselves and for our families. That’s a terrible thing to accept.

Another article entitled, “Old Age, Wrinkles & The Earlybird Special: Are You Afraid Of Aging?” by Gala Darling. In her article, she stated that all of us will get into aging, and it doesn’t matter! What matters is how we feel about it. Some might feel irritated knowing that they’re getting old, simply by the presence of a gray hair, crow’s feet in the eye, and saggy skin. But some are excited of getting old. They are excited what they will look like when they reach their “grandma/pa” looks. 

Darling added, “A lot of us have denial about aging. Subconsciously, we think, that will never happen to me! But alas, one day, we realize it already has! We may not feel any older on the inside, but our outsides tell a different story.”

I am totally against Darling’s statement, saying that people are excited to see their future look as an old individual. That thing seemed to be terrifying for me! But a sentiment has got into me. I realized that it is not that bad to see myself with a gray hair and a saggy skin. In fact, that was exciting! I learned that it getting old isn’t bad anyway. The more years we stay alive, the more years we live our lives!

As what the quotation is saying, growing old is mandatory, which we can’t do something to stop it, because if it happens, then we are dead. Likewise, we can’t force the earth to stop revolving, ‘cause if we do, we’ll all die. But growing up is optional, which basically means, it is up to us whether we want to act our age or act as if we are teen-agers, who’re carefree, wild, and stress-free, even though we are not. And that is a bright side!

Age is not a measurement of how people deal with everything, such as pursuing our dreams. Feeling good is one way to look good. And if you look good, you feel at ease, merely saying that age do not dictates how we feel.

Being mature is important more so if they have big responsibilities to shoulder. Being a good person, in whatever situation is on; helping other people, being open-minded and responsible for everything we do is a sign of maturity. Being a mature person does not necessarily mean you are a serious type of person. We should take responsibility in every action, feelings and interests we have. That is how a mature person acts.

As I keep on analyzing the quotation sent to me by my friend, I finally realized that I should not wish for my death at an early age, whereas, I haven’t seen how will I look three to four decades from now. Instead, I should pray for a longer life so that I’ll be able to see my future children as they grow old and up, my grandchildren, and paramount, regardless of how I look, how sagged my skin is, how white my hair is, but to be able to live my life to the fullest!