Seniority
When started to write about this I was not really thinking about old age, but rather about the fact that my job makes me sometimes feel I am growing to learn and make things out of a variety of situations. I was not trained for what I do. I am a self taught person who is drawing her own conclusions. I was not born and raised in the Google times, but I have learned so many things using books, movies, music, experiences shared by others and applied them to various situations. I have come to that seniority which some consider old age, while it should actually be considered life experienced or professional expertise which helps me get along even in difficult situations. And the thought came from a comforting playlist received from a group of senior experts. And it was the complexity of our music preferences that made me realise and feel the confidence with every word placed on paper. This was the final statement I feel I have come higher than where I was a year ago and that I have learned how to stand taller and straight up in front of any challenge received professionally. On top of this perfect mix of voices, pianos and various other instruments in a perfect blend of my generation it’s the ideas that I can read through a certain situation and get the simple ideas simply extracted to speak up whenever I feel uncomfortable.
My generation was raised with shame and restrictions due to silly times when women were supposed to stand back. Yet I had around me a strong mom who challenged the men around her to listen to her and get things done and this was a very strong example of the power of smart women having jobs equal to men. My son’s generation will be raised into a world of equals and respect. Our generation mistook respect for something which was different to the lessons we teach our kids today. Respect used to be that old people know best. These days I can strongly suggest my kid knows very well what he wants and it’s best this way. Respect should come from not disturbing nature and the world around him with his noise, but playing the right and powerful music of his heart. My generation knew they had to shut up in order to let the elder decide for them. Being older meant knowing better. Today I learn that being older only makes you adapt better to situations which are changing so quickly and respect means accepting the younger ones have a vision which is many times more creative than the restrictive times we lived in. And it is because of this freedom of expression that this young generation can change the world. The same world we will live in and the same world our parents and grandparents ruined with their lack of respect to the younger ones.
When seeing the pollution and massive consumption going on around us I feel like changing something as the respect comes from the heritage we have to leave behind not from not upsetting the elders. And yes I struggle everyday with the simple heritage we leave behind. We consume and destroy so much that these little ones are not able to rebuild in time for their world not to come tumbling down.
Also I see old people who are so selfish in trying to live their lives with a massive respect required from others while they show no respect to the following generations. And the seniority like this makes me fear that the world is clearly missing the vision of tomorrow with any bit of respect. Seniority used to be about heritage left behind, not about selfish acts. Whether it was a war for freedom or simple self sacrifice, it’s our duty as seniors to make the world better, not ruin it. Seniority should be about heritage and sacrifice. We should be able to have a vision of the future for the next generation.
