Good News for Older People
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Loading ...An American survey has found that the oldest people amongst us are the happiest and are more socially active than younger people. A sociologist from the University of Chicago who conducted the study says: “The good news is that with age comes happiness.”
Of course, a certain amount of distress in old age is inevitable, including aches, pains and deaths of loved ones and friends. But older people have learned to be more content with what they have than younger adults. This is because older people have learnt to lower their expectations and accept their achievements. Over 28,000 people between the ages of 18 and 88 took part in the survey. In general, the odds of being happy increased 5 percent with every 10 years of age.
The research also confirmed the belief that all unhappiness is caused by denial of the present. We think problems are caused by our situations in life, but attachment to the past and the future is the real problem. You cannot be unhappy and be fully grateful of your present situation. It is impossible to have a problem when your attention is in the now. When you keep your attention in the present moment, a situation is either dealt with or accepted. A problem means you are dwelling on a situation mentally without having any true intention or possibility of taking ACTION now.
Older people eventually learn to live in the now and accept what is. You get to a point in life where you finally learn to accept things as they really are. You finally realise that nothing is perfect.
The good news is that you have the power to learn to change your limiting beliefs and perspectives at any age; you do not have to wait until you are much older. The key is in studying the wisdom of the older ones and applying it while you’re still young.
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April 28th, 2008 at 12:18 pm
This is very well written and definitely true. As a 60 year old, I agree completely that we must stay in the present to maintain any amount of happiness.
I have heard it said that expectations are future resentments. Because normally what we expect does not come true.
Another thought is that if you are expecting something bad to happen put it in you “God box”. Write the dreaded event down on a piece of paper, put it in a box, “turn it over to God”, and forget the event. In a few months, or even a year, open up the box and read what you have turned over. I have found that most of the terrible things that were about to happen, I cannot even remember because they did not come to pass.
Life is as good as I allow it to be.