We have a tendency to lump age groups together. We name groups “toddlers” or “teens”, which make common sense. Some individuals in our society who are over the age of 55 are annoyed if you call them senior or elder.
I remember leaving a shopping trip at a local store thinking that they didn’t charge me the tax on what I purchased. Once I got home, I looked at my receipt and realized they had given me a senior discount (which started at 55 years of age). I was offended because, number one, I was 54 and two, the 20-something clerk didn’t even ask me if I was a senior – he just assumed I was “old” enough. You would think I should be happy I got the discount but I was taken aback by this person thinking I was a “senior” and that I looked “old”!
In looking back on this episode, I realized that it was more the vanity than the title “senior” that offended me. But, I know many people who are beautiful at 80 or 90 or 100 – so what was it? Perhaps just a passage that I was not quite prepared for at that moment in time. It might have been a bad hair day as well – if you know what I mean!
We named our business “Eldercare” because I like the word “elder”. I think of the esteem that elders hold in native cultures around the world. I am reminded of the statesmen that have reached the highest level in their tenure. The church I belong to addresses the leaders on the board as “Elders”. So to me, this is a term of respect and earned leadership – even if only by age.
Will the baby boomers coin another term for their later years? Are they going to welcome the discounts that can come with a certain age or will they deny them in vanity? What do you want to be called: a senior, an older adult or an elder?