Ordinary Grace Analysis

The purpose of the assignment was to interview an “elder” member of society to gain valuable information and insight into an individual’s experiences and development, and how they pertain to biosocial, cognitive, and psychosocial development. I had the pleasure of interviewing a woman aged 68, who provided a glimpse of the wisdom she has gained over her lifetime as well as her daily interactions and age-related topics.

"You are only as old as you feel." Many recognize this saying.. In Me Talk Pretty One Day, David Sedaris takes this concept to a new level as he describes his struggles to assimilate with the other students attending Alliance Francaise. He is well past prime school age and while the language barrier is a common thread all new students share, Mr. Sedaris feels an outcast; unable to relate as a result of

Within this essay I will be exploring the benefits and disadvantages of dividing later life into a 'Third age' and 'Fourth age' finally I will be reflecting on how my own experiences have affected the ways I have responded to this question.

First, the forms of aging and life course structures depend on the nature of the society in which individuals participate. Second, while social interaction is seen as having the greatest formative influence in the early part of life, such interaction retains crucial importance throughout the life course. Third, that social forces exert regular influences on individuals of all ages at any given point in time” (Theories of Aging. (n.d.)). The movie portrays aging being more about living the rest of life rather than dyeing in them.

The movie, The Intern, impacts society’s view of aging and older adults in a positive way by portraying that they are wise. Even though the main character, an elderly adult, was teased for being clueless and ignorant in the beginning, he ended up being the role model for everyone in the office. Older adults are often belittled for their act, that they see nothing is new and fun anymore since they have gone through so much already. However, a lot of people do not fathom the fact that an older adult’s past experiences are helpful for young people, since we can learn from them and their past mistakes. Their wisdom and past exposure are the reason that each of us are moving forward, instead of regressing and repeating the problem.

As aging occurs within humans, not only do physical changes occur, but changes in the mind occur as well. Changes that change the way the brain thinks and influences decision making, as well as reactions to certain situations that occur. These changes are apparent as the brain and body ages and can clearly be seen when those of varying ages interact with each other. In Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury, one of the main themes appears to be the accustomed act of maturing, or growing up, specifically, how comprehension is different in people of different ages. Bradbury’s novel includes characters of various ages ranging from little kids to elders whose time has almost come to an end. These characters interact with one another throughout the

I believe maturity is not dependent on a person’s age because humans are affected by different situations, are different genders and are raised differently.

I had always been mature for my age; I started kindergarten when I was four and I made up for that age gap by acting a little older. However, the true maturity that I hold now, the maturity people refer to when they say I am “wise beyond [my] years” did not develop in kindergarten, or even in school.

    Maturity is not a fickle expression such as happiness or frustration, but rather an inherent quality one gains over time, such as courage or integrity. Before maturity can be expressed, the one who expresses it must have significant confidence in himself, since self-confidence is the root of maturity. Being flexible and formulating one's own opinions or ideas are aspects of maturity, but neither is possible without self-confidence. The greatest aspect of maturity is the ability to make decisions which society does not agree with. Whether or not one follows through with these ideas is not important. What is important is the ability to make the decision. These decisions represent the greatest measure

A Grace Disguised written by Jerry Sittser, is one of the most heart felt and transparent books I have ever read. The idea that our purpose and who we are is shaped through our suffering and loss, puts one in perspective to understand that our pain lies a blessing, even at times we don't understand. Jerry Sittser, a husband, son, and father of four is a true witness to what its like to experience loss and even feel hopelessness in times of despair. In the fall of 1991, him and his families lives were changed forever. Driving back home from a Native American reservation in rural Idaho, an incoming car driving extremely reckless and fast, jumped its lane and smashed head-on into their families mini-van. Rescuing his daughter Catherine and two sons David and John, Jerry Sittser had to endure seeing the lives of his wife Lynda, mother Grace, and four year old daughter Diane flash before his eyes (Sittser, 1998 pg. 26). Three generations instantly gone without any signs or warnings. Letters of comfort that was sent by mail frequently asked Jerry the question, “Why did this have to happen to your family? Y'all were the ideal family to model. If bad things can happen to good people like the Sittser’s then we’re all in trouble (Sittser, 1998 pg. 30).” In this book Jerry Sittser highlights many different aspects of how to differentiate our view of loss from both a carnal and spiritual perspective. Yes, its no debate that loss is a terrifying and dreadful event to experience, but

Younger people have tended to look towards the elderly for wisdom and guidance since the beginning of recorded history and beyond. Students to teachers, children to parents, ordinary people to royalty and politicians – generally those who have lived longer are not only believed, but expected to have garnered more knowledge in their longer lives. Abraham Lincoln once said, “I do not think much of a man who is not wiser today than he was yesterday. Also, in 2008 the Australian newspaper published an article detailing a study undertaken by the University of Aarhus in Denmark, which disproved the theory that the mind is at its peak in the late teens to mid-twenties. But all this is not to say that older people should not sometimes listen

“We proclaim Christ and Him Crucified.” Why is this important and why does your pastor say this ‘all the time’? [Proclaiming Christ Crucified]

“Maturity is[not] just becoming a young adult, it[is] developing a mindset of an adult”. This qoute is remembered by many kids and young adults around Hot Springs, AR for it reminds them of Latrell Ellis. While most would bully someone, Latrell is the type that is mature enough to cease all bullying immediately. An example of Latrell’s maturity is he has been driving since the age of twelve. “Latrell is so responsible”, announced a certain lady in his life, “H does what

A common piece of everybody’s vocabulary today is a word used in various contexts with little understanding to comprehend what it really means. “Maturity”, the stream of questions that come to our mind when we begin to ponder on the eight letter word is numerous. The most basic being, “What is maturity? How does one step up on the pedestal of maturity? And how do we measure maturity?” Einstein puts his perspective on maturity in an even more complicated manner, “I live in that solitude which is painful in youth, but delicious in the years of maturity”, this view point does paint us a picture of maturity, but leads us to a whole new world of mystification.

The authors Richard Robins and Kali Trzesniewski wrote an article about how self-esteem changes across a persons’ life time. They speculated that in early childhood self-esteem is relatively high then begins to decline. In adolescents’ self-esteem continues to decline, until adulthood when self-esteem gradually begins to increase until around the age of sixty. When an individual hits old age self-esteem begins to decline again. The authors speculate that decline in old age is similar to the decline of self-esteem for adolescents-the rapid changes happening in their lives. For both adolescents and old people their lives begin to change in ways that weren’t apparent to them before. For adolescents and people in