5 REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD HAVE OLDER PEOPLE AS YOUR BEST FRIENDS

     Contrary to the general belief, older people are not as boring and close-minded as we portray them to be. Our peers are really fun to be around no doubt, but having a few older friends can be very beneficial to our lives as well.

The following are reasons why you should consider having older people as best friends.

1.Gain wisdom beyond your years

Older people by virtue of their age have a vast variety of knowledge and a heap of experience about almost everything in life. Most times, they’ve been there and they’ve done that. So, mingling with them helps you discover a number of different ways to accomplish certain tasks and make better decisions. Learning about how they lived and pull through in their time, gives you a deeper sense of appreciation of what you have today.

2.  Life preparation

Older people never run out of advices to give out because like I mentioned earlier, they’ve been there, they’ve done that. Learning from their experiences and trying as much as possible to avoid the mistakes they made is wise. It prepares you for for life. Training yourself, taking the advice of others who have experienced certain things into account, multiple options and a plan may all help prepare you for things to come.

(Trehanna)

3.  Listening skill

Older people like to talk and share experiences and most of the time, all you need to do is sit back and listen. Learning to give a good listening ear to anyone that needs it is one virtue that cannot be underestimated in life. Patience, care, compassion, reasonable thinking and meaningful contributions come from listening attentively.

4. Support

On a daily basis, we encounter different issues and troubles that make life a bit more difficult than it should be. Older people are always there to encourage you, cheer you on and and open you up to different viewpoints that you may not have considered about your present situation. We gain strength from positive enforcements. Many older people have lived very fulfilling lives. Listening to their stories about their tough times and witnessing how it made them a better person lets you know you can do it too.  

(Trehanna)

5. Better confidants

With an older, non-manipulative but mature friend, you can actually sit down and have a decent conversation without any demands. You can say about anything and not worry about having such information used against you. They contribute more meaningfully and give you deeper insights to life.

*So what do you think, peers or Elders?