It is a well-known fact that many old people suffer from depression a large part of the time.
Other, less aged, people wonder about that problem and wonder why such a problem should exist, especially when the older folk have “lived a full life” and should be willing to fade away into the sunset and never be heard from again.
I submit, on the basis of my observation of old people for 73 years, having joined their ranks several years ago and from some study of our “oldsters” during my professional career in which I earned considerable credentials, that nothing is so depressing as the feeling of not being needed, of feeling useless.
Many of us have college degrees, including graduate degrees, in a variety of areas and could be of great value, either in a consulting capacity or in direct work.
To shun older people for any reason is perhaps the worst kind of discrimination. We should — have to? — consider people “with snow on their heads” as a great asset rather than a liability.
We need to look at the training, experience and interests of our old people when we look at our needs in the community, cities, churches, anywhere we have need for help in our organizations. Let’s look at our old folks and continue to harvest richly from this population.
William O. Adams
Plano, Texas
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