📘 Part 3: Old people

This episode's vocabulary

Deaf (adj.) - someone who is deaf is unable to hear anything or is unable to hear very well.

To navigate (verb) - to move or progress through in a logical sequence.

Attention span (noun) - the interval during which an individual can concentrate, as on a single object, idea, or activity.

Counselling (noun) - the job or process of listening to someone and giving them advice about their problems.

To draw on (phrasal verb) - use one's experience, talents, or skills as a resource.

Strong suit (noun) - one's most highly developed characteristic, talent, or skill; forte.

Wisdom (noun) - the quality or state of being wise; knowledge of what is true or right coupled with just judgment as to action; sagacity, discernment, or insight.

To grasp (verb) - to get hold of mentally; comprehend; understand.

Coming down the pipeline (phrase) - something coming in the future.

To enable (verb) - to make able; give power, means, competence or ability to.

Proximity (noun) - nearness in place, time, order, occurrence, or relation; closeness.

The elderly (plural noun) - people of advanced age; old.

Fragmented (adj.) - existing or functioning as though broken into separate parts; disorganized; disunified.

Categorically (adj.) - without exception; unconditionally; absolutely.

Dementia (noun) - a condition characterized by progressive, persistent, severe impairment of intellectual capacity, including memory loss, confusion, and emotional instability, resulting from the loss of or damage to neurons in the brain.

Amenity (noun) - any feature that provides comfort, convenience, or pleasure.

Able-bodied (adj.) - having a strong, healthy body; physically fit.

Questions and Answers

M: What things can young people learn from older people?

R: Well, generally, they tend to know more about how to do practical things for themselves, because they grew up without as much tech as we have now. So younger people could learn how to cook or clean or do the washing without relying on machines.

M: How do people have a conversation with an elderly person?

R: What a question! Probably in the same way they can with just about everybody else, to be honest, assuming the older person isn't deaf or something like that. It's just sit and navigate the topics together, create interest and balance the chat. It's not hard.

M: Why might older people be better at working than young people?

R: I think that will largely depend on the type of work we're on about here. But older people might have better attention spans than younger people. Since they're in decline in younger people. That might make them better at counselling and therapy. They also have more life experience to draw on. But it's got to be the right sort in order for it to be useful in this way.

M; What are the advantages of having people of different ages living in the same house?

R: Well, every generation has that strong suit, doesn't it? Older people have wisdom, younger people can more readily grasp new ideas and technologies coming down the pipeline, and enable older people. And there can be a consistency of tradition smoothly passing and evolving from one generation to the next if they're in close proximity.

M: In your country, how do young people interact with the elderly?

R: Oh, not a great deal outside of their grandparents, to be honest. Some people have an elderly neighbour or a relative they might get on well with but overall, it's just isolated encounters. Communities are a lot more fragmented than they used to be. Which makes things like that more difficult.

M: Has old people's life quality improved compared to the past?

R: Oh, categorically not. They're living longer, but there's an epidemic of loneliness as they get shut away in homes and increasing cases of dementia and other related illnesses. And just the general lack of care, really, it's absolutely pathetic, but not at all surprising.

M: In what situations do old people share the same interests as young people?

R: Oh, God... Well, wherever there's a common interest. They might enjoy the same hobbies or live in similar places with the same amenities. And of course, they share a culture, even if it's constantly evolving. I suppose they might also share similar levels of low empowerment because power is concentrated in the hands of the wealthier and more able-bodied. So the rights of younger people who have less money and older people who are less physically able need to be protected too, just for different reasons.

M: Hey, thank you, Rory!