The author of the article begins by sharing her perception, or so she thought, about her own aging.
“Aging is no big deal, I thought. I grew up around grandparents and great-grandparents and as a teen and young adult I worked in nursing homes. My friends were often at least a decade older than me. Always focused on the future, with each new decade I felt stronger, more confident and content.
So I was surprised when, new to my sixth decade, I found myself looking back at the past and thinking, does this mean I’m old? I’m not ready for that! Searching the web and academic literature, I realized I’d stepped right into a stereotype about older people — that they live in the past.”
The article looks at how reminiscing about the past can be beneficial.
