As I was getting ready for work the other day, I made a strange discovery --  A GREY HAIR!  After further investigation, I discovered TWO MORE!  At first, I was appalled. I realize I am not a spry chick anymore, but am I really getting to the age where grey hairs are springing up and wrinkles are appearing? And at what point did I start snoozing through the late shows? Maybe I don't have a young radiant face anymore, but does that mean getting older is a bad thing? Aren't we always saying, "If I only knew then what I know now"?  The older we get, the wiser we become. As women, we are led to believe the best years of our lives are in our twenties, but there are a number of pretty darn good reasons for us to stop grieving over our grey hairs and whining about our wrinkles!

1. The more the years pass, the more knowledge you gain

When we were in school, we all had to write that dreaded essay. I wrote about what I did over the summer or what I wanted to be when I grew up. Trying to come up with 3 to 5 pages of an essay was always difficult!  Now, if you ask me to write about what I've done or what I want to become, I could breeze through a 3 to 5 page essay easy! You just know more stuff when you're older. Everyday living is a learning experience. Even the knowledge about the little stuff counts -- from how to read a city map or plan a vacation to creating a spreadsheet in Excel or researching on the internet.  Any kind of knowledge is valuable.

2. You become more & more at peace with yourself

As a young girl, I was totally confused. I seemed to be frustrated and unhappy with my parents and any other adult because they just didn't understand me. Nowadays, I've come to find out that I had no insight. Remember the essay about what I wanted to be or do when I grew up?  I had no idea! That's what made it difficult. This type of knowledge cannot be taught, but it comes with age. We all have to learn self-knowledge ourselves and the only way to learn it is by getting older. The more years that go by, the more perspective we gain about ourselves.

3. You are just plain smarter!

How many poor decisions can you count on one hand that you made as a teenager or young adult? I don't have enough fingers or toes. I do know I have learned from my mistakes. Adversity leads to knowledge and knowledge leads to opportunity. By taking a look at those decisions, I have the opportunity to do better and make better decisions in the future. Women tend to find that with age, self-esteem increases. We learn to accept ourselves and not worry so much about what others might think. Now, isn't that smart?

4. More people look to YOU for advice

When I was a teenager, I really thought I knew a lot. No one took me seriously and probably for good reason. Lack of experience, or I really didn't know as much as I thought, was more than likely the rationale for their judgment. The older I get, the more and more my friends, colleagues, and even my older sister come to me for advice. At times I can help, but sometimes not. Nevertheless, it feels good to be trusted enough for others to share their personal problems with me. Trust just seems to come with age.

5. You have more stories to share with the world

After all the knowledge you gain about the world and yourself, after learning from your mistakes and living through adversity, when you are older, you have enough information to write a novel! When we are young, we have our imagination, but  when we are older, we have insight. The stories older adults share are genuine and begin the process of developing knowledge and insight with the younger generation. I am truly captivated by the stories I have heard throughout the years. The wars, the natural disasters, the first steps on the moon -- when these stories are shared, we are all the better for seeing them through the eyes of older, more experienced adults! 

E.D. Barnett
Human Resources Manager

Chicago Senior Living
Assisted Living in Chicago