We did a survey with 25-45 year-olds to understand younger people’s perceptions about being older. The second greatest fear they said older people faced was death.

That simply isn’t true. Death holds no fear for them. They have accepted it and moved on.

That’s not to say they don’t have fears… some fear the way they will die… others have financial concerns, but all of these concerns are wrapped up in one little word… freedom.

Freedom means everything to them, and the loss of freedom is what they mourn when faced with less mobility or declining sight.

In one of our discussion groups I heard about the ultimate symbol of freedom… something that means more to seniors than many other things. Driving.

You can see their eyes light up when they talk about driving… hitting the road… going wherever they want… four wheels of freedom.

When the subject of “taking” their driver’s license away comes up, their eye’s change to those of a nine-year-old who says, “you’re not going to tell me what to do”. Beyond that you also see a little fear. Losing the ability to drive is huge to a senior. For many driving is a symbol that they are still in control, still able to do anything…

Margaret looked up and said, “I haven’t driven my car in over two months. I only put about 500 miles on my car every year… but it’s there.”

Some talked openly that they knew they drove longer than they should have… and for the first time I understood why… just one more trip… just a little more freedom.

It’s okay if you’re squirming in your seat thinking that some day you too will stop driving… that’s normal… but hopefully it will also encourage us to reach out and offer some of our freedom to these courageous people all around us who fear they are losing their’s.

This entry was posted on Friday, August 17th, 2007 at 3:31 pm and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.