There are a lot of things that society considers to be important in the modern world. Environmentalism, feminism, race relations, and much more occupy a great deal of space in many people’s consciousness.
However, there’s one thing that always seems to slip by a lot of people despite the fact that it’s incredibly important. That is the care of senior citizens. Older people are often pushed off to the sidelines and treated almost as if they were second class citizens. Of course, this is undoubtedly an unfair and unjust way of treating them, and it’s important that people work hard against it.
With that in mind, here are a few things that you need to consider if you want to help to treat the senior citizens in your life with more care and compassion.
Care
One of the most unpleasant things is just how badly senior citizens are treated by many elements of society. They are often ignored when it comes to decisions made in government and a lot of programs that are designed to support them find themselves being defunded or cut entirely.
There are plenty of home care providers who are able to support elderly people, and this is fantastic. However, they are often private companies who simply don’t have the means to support the sheer number of older people in modern society. Not only that but many other people simply can’t afford that kind of care without the support of governmental intervention.
Cultural ideas
In previous generations, there was always a certain reverence that older people were treated with. Even if you didn’t agree with something, an older person said you were expected to treat them with respect. Of course, this was often because these people fought in some of the most significant wars in the history of civilization.
These days, because most senior citizens have been civilians their entire lives, they don’t get our respect nearly as often. They are swept under the rug and thought of as an inconvenience much of the time. It’s important that we try to fight against these kinds of cultural stereotypes and remember that older people always deserve your respect, no matter who they are.
Personal responsibility
Of course, these kinds of broad cultural changes aren’t the sort of things that will happen overnight, so it’s important that you think about your own future in more concrete terms. Things, like saving for your retirement and being aware of the impact that your lifestyle will have on your health further down the line, are incredibly important to making sure that you’re as happy and comfortable as possible in your later years.
Not only that but it’s important to remember that younger generations learn from the one that came before them. If your children and grandchildren don’t see your generation treating older people with respect and dignity, how can they be expected to do the same for you?
These things aren’t always easy to change or do anything about, but being aware of them is the first step towards being able to make a difference in the future.
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