Old Age & Wisdom

I'd like to begin by stating that I understand this is can be a controversial subject, but it's fascinating and I'd like to give my view on it. It is quite simple to understand that as we age the mind grows and we become smarter. This intelligence is dependent on a person's ability to learn and grow as a person. Intelligence can be altered by diseases and illnesses and it varies per person. Intelligence can be measured by IQ tests, but it is critical to understand the difference between street smarts and book smarts. I won't get into to much detail because the topic is based on age and wisdom. A person who is street smart tends to be more comfortable with handling real-life situations and interacting with others. A person who is book smart is more comfortable expressing the knowledge they have and applying it to work, tests, or getting a task done. It is possible to have a little of both or be comfortable with both. Both are important in becoming a well-rounded person capable of taking tests and interacting with other people. 

As we age, we begin to become wiser because we see and experience things. The more time spent alive, the greater the chance that you will experience more than someone who has been alive for less time. The beauty of it is that we are seen as wiser by younger crowds and as a young crowd, we assume that the older crowd is wiser. But is experience necessarily wisdom? Do these two go hand in hand? For the most part, they do. We learn from situations that happen to us and the next time a similar situation occurs, we are better prepared to deal with it. Think of a child who goes to the park. The child climbs up the slide stairs and slides down. The day is hot and as he or she slides their back burns a little. The child will eventually realize that if it is too hot outside, the slide will burn if he or she goes down it. This concept may take time for children, but it is much easier for adults.

This leads me to common sense. An older person with experience and wisdom should also have common sense. You don't need experience to have common sense. The older we get, the more we realize our environment and the difference between right or wrong. Not everyone excels in common sense, but at the very least, we can detect danger. For example, jumping off a cliff. A good majority of adults realize this is dangerous and shouldn't be done, but a child may not understand this. The adult tells the child not to jump off the cliff because it is dangerous and the child will assume the parent is wiser and will listen. It's fascinating because if you look at a figure you have as a role model, generally, they are older than you. Our role models or our mentors are older, more experienced, and wiser. Please remember, this isn't the case 100% of the time, but for the most part, it is!

Your time for wisdom will come.

After all, every day eventually comes...

Expressed by: Oscar Mendieta