It amazes me in our current culture how little value is placed on our senior citizens. They have seen more and experienced more than most of us. Whatever most of us are going through they have a story they can relate. They can also give us a gift of foretelling our future to a great extent. What do I mean by this? People that are older than us have not only seen a great deal in their own lives, but have seen a good many others live their lives as well. They essentially know if you play the game this way, the end result will be this.
The trouble is, when we are young it can be difficult to fully understand, or believe what they are telling us. Having not lived the amount of years they have, or experiencing what they may have went through it can often seem like we are speaking two different languages. So why would it be important to listen to someone speaking a language we don’t? In this case everyone will eventually learn this language.
Finding this all a little hard to follow? Let me share a personal story with you. My grandfather was one of the most important and influential people in my life. We had plenty of private conversations where he shared with me what he knew of life. There were times I found it hard to maintain interest and even others when I thought he was crazy. My grandfather passed away almost two decades ago. Here is the amazing thing, some of what he taught me I am only now able to understand. He teaches me, and I learn from him to this very day, almost 20 years after his passing. There are always moments when I wish he were still alive to clarify a point, or to answer a question. It is then I realize I should have paid more attention to the words he spoke when he was here.
So yourself a huge favor, when an elder speaks to you make sure you listen. They are our greatest teachers and our living treasures.