Whatever the youngsters may think, in the end it is we Seniors who are guiding the world. The young may rule, make decisions and fight battles and wars but the good advice and guidance is still handed down by our Senior members.
Pope Francis is 76 years old, is the 266th pontiff in the Church’s 2,000-year history and is taking the helm at a time of great crisis in the church. We wish him success. He is at the age when most of us are quite happy to hit the couch after a long and busy working life. 76 is a time of looking back, teasing grandchildren and taking it easy. 76 should be a time of reading and relaxing, not one of applying for a new full-time job and stating one’s readiness to work overtime and weekends as well.
Pope Francis is clearly facing his old age head on. He is neither scared of old age and neither is he bowing to it or preparing to spend it like many old men. He does not accept that aging is a strange and foreign territory usually described in negative terms for those whom, much to their surprise, find themselves lost in its hinterland, often unsuitably dressed and without a compass. Pope Francis will not be found stumbling about in the wilderness of old age. He knows that the world now recognizes that older people have assets, capabilities and talents which are often intensified and not erased by age.
Here’s wishing him luck!