Have you ever stood impatiently in a queue at the store or in a supermarket while a pensioner took an age to settle his or her bill? Have you ever become impatient while driving behind a senior citizen who was driving, so you thought, far too slowly? Have you ever lost your temper when an older person failed to make an appointment perhaps through ill health? Do you get annoyed because an elderly relative is a noisy or slow or picky eater? Come to that, are you easily annoyed by anything an older person might do? Perhaps we should all try to be just a little more patient. For one thing is certain, barring illness, murder, accidents, or war, we are all heading for senior citizenship someday, and sooner than we think at that. Older people often drive slowly or more carefully because perhaps their eyesight is no longer so good. Well they shouldn't be driving then, you might think. But if they live somewhere where public transport is almost non-existent, what alternative do they have? They might also have arthritic joints that produce significant pain every time the wheel is turned, or the pedals depressed. If that were your pain, wouldn't you take things a little more gently too? As my father used to say, old age isn't for sissies, and taking one look at his dreadfully gnarled and twisted hands caused through chronic arthritis, it was easy to imagine how much pain there could be within those twisted limbs. They made me squirm just to look at them! So next time you feel like bawling out someone who may be keeping you waiting a couple of minutes, please think twice about it. Go one step further even; why not offer to assist them with their provisions back to their vehicle? Who knows? If you do that, perhaps some kind person might even do the same thing for you, when your turn comes, whenever that may be. Old age is certainly not for sissies, the elderly have a great deal to put up with as it is, and a little more patience and understanding really does go a long way. |
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