Respect for the elderly...

I heard a woman tell her son how he should show nothing but respect for the older generation. I agree with this woman and taught my kids to always respect those who are older then they are but I often wonder if the older generation always deserves their respect at all times.

I am out and among older people and I often hear them say nothing but nasty stuff about this younger generation. They are rude to the kids. They yell at them and call them names. They talk about how stupid todays kids are all the time and how they had to work so much harder than the kids of today.

Yes many of the elderly had it tough. But so do many of the teens of today. While they are belittling the young ones who was being the lazy layabouts some call them, they are forgetting the millions of teens who get up and go to school or college for the day then go to a job that helps pay their way thru school or for whatever things they might need in life and I have seen kids go out of their way to be respectful of adults only to be sworn at or called names for the silliest reasons. They often feel they have the right to push kids aside and be first in line and such things simply because they are older. I have seen some even elbow smaller kids out the way when walking. It's as though they are shoving them aside and saying, 'get out of the way.' Instead of quietly saying, 'excuse me, please.'

Not only are the physical about it at time but you always have those little old women who like to sit and gossip about the younger generation.

I think that so many forget what it is to be young . Not long ago I heard a woman belittle a young woman who was pregnant. Appareantly this woman forgot that she was in the same vote several years ago and people were talking about her. I just looked at the woman and said, 'well, some of us should not talk.' She did not know what to say but there are countless times I have seen that happen and have wondered if these women think we have all forgotten what happened when we were that age.

I was raised by an elderly person. She was wonderful and knew how to relate to people of all ages and one of the first things learned from her was to show respect for others. Not just elders but for people in general and it seems to me that we are lacking that in todays world so we, as part of the older genearation should show our young people what many of us were taught. Show them respect when they deserve and when they make a mistake, teach them that it is alright to do so without belittling them.

I tell old and young alike, if they want respect they have to earn it.