does being old give you any more insight about what is really important in life?

Question

or does it make no difference what age you are, when it comes to chasing useless and irrelevant things? does everyone have to learn the hard way what is of true and lasting value?

Answer 1

Yes.

I love growing older as I am learning so much and becoming much more insightful.

I've learned that it's the simple things in life that make it all worthwhile such as waking up in my own bed, taking a nap, enjoying that first cup of coffee in the morning, eating good chocolate, watching the sunrise and sunsets, reading a good book, watching a funny movie and most important, loving my husband and thanking God everyday for allowing me to gain his love, cherishing my good memories, and when saying goodbye to someone, saying goodbye as though you may never see them again.

Life is an adventure and it really depends on YOU and how you deal with everything life throws your way.

Never take anything for granted, because life can change in a flash.

Make the most of each and everyday and learn, listen and love.
Don't wish your life away!
Enjoy today!

Answer 2

I think it must because you have so much experience to draw upon. You learn & achieve wisdom as you go. When you're younger you may be distracted, you're so busy trying to get somewhere or do something but by the time you reach old age you can relax. In a sense, you've reached your destination. You can still keep learning, achieving & doing new things but you have the luxury of slowing down. When you retire & don't have to spend a great portion of your life working you have more time for leisure, hobbies, travel, the things you love. More time to spend with family. More time to reflect on what's important and more time to enjoy it...

or maybe you never really have the answers. Maybe some people waste their old age complaining of ailments & not enjoying life & living it to its fullest. Some people are workaholics & neglect their families. They may not retire or may retire late in life & even then be focused on the mundane minutiae of life, neglecting their loved ones, their real passions, the stuff of life.

Maybe age isn't a factor. Maybe you can have an epiphany at any age. A lightbulb moment when you realize what it's really about and prioritize your life accordingly. Fortunate are those who realize it at a young age so they have more time to enjoy the best things in life.

Answer 3

Experience does not necessarily make you wiser. I've seen people make the same mistakes over and over again. And never stop wondering why their lives are a mess.
My daughter wanted to have a family and kids when she was 4 and playing with dolls. I guess she will still want it at 20.
If you ask an average young male - what do you think about never having a serious relationship in your life and dying alone with no heir - what do you think the answer will be?
It's just that younger people do not think the time is right for them to "settle". It's simply too early.
Then, when the time comes, they do realise that it is "now or never" ....

Answer 4

I would say, not always. People differ very much, and a lot of older people have over the years developed some very set ideas, and are unwilling - and probably unable - to change them. I know a few people like this.

However, I'm 65 now, and can definitely see times in my life where I made big decisions based on things that weren't all that important. I would say that age has at least opened my eyes to the worth of family, and flexibility, and most of all love.

Answer 5

It all depends on how you lived your life and by what principles you lived. Some people just waste their lives on idle things, and don't seem to learn from anything around them. Some aged people have great minds yet focus solely on material benefits and forget for example, the spiritual blessings of what is really important in life... that is why so many people do not know the answer to: 'What is the purpose of Life' ... and therefore give the credit to 'chance' rather than to a Creator.

Answer 6

Absolutely. Certainly there are things in life that are constant, and the basic ideas of importance as well as indifference are subjective. I think that I have much better insight now than when I was 18 years old. I'm 31, so I don't think that by any means I have plateaued in my quest for meaning. It is an ever-changing reality that we live in, and age/experience just from an empirical standpoint gives you greater insight into personal and worldly importance.

Answer 7

Yes, it helps. When you are young everything is about getting things - partner, car, house and all the things to go in it, qualifications, better job and so on. As you get older you realise that whilst all these things make your physical life more comfortable they do not necessarily make you any happier or content with what you have. It is at this point that you may start questioning what is the meaning of your life, existence etc. and come to realise that the people in your life are more important than the job, house, car etc. I think this is why elderly people cherish their families, especially grandchildren, so much.

Answer 8

I sincerely wish the answer to this question was a simple "yes." One would think that simply surviving a long time would give one wisdom, but that isn't always the case. Many seniors continue to repeat the same mistakes that they made in their youth.

However, this does not mean that all seniors do. Many have attained wisdom the hard way: by making mistakes and learning from them. These are the "old folks" you should listen to. Most (including myself!) are willing to tell you what mistakes we made in hopes that you will not do the same.

Answer 9

I believe it comes with experiance more than age. Of course if you are older then it is possible you will have had more experiance than someone younger than you. But then you have to decide the value of this experiance as different lives will have different experiances and shape people differently for better or for worse. These experiances will in turn help people to decide for themselves what they perceive to be most important in life. As I've stated already older people would proably have more experiance in life to make a decent descision but it's not set in stone, you could be old but have been locked away in a room for most of your life, what you would then perceive as most important would be drastically different from someone else, of course that is an extreme example.
An older person would be expected to have more experiance and would usually be more capable of producing a decent argument as to what is most important in life.

Answer 10

Some of the most important things in life are knowing where your house keys, spectacles and purse are. These are things which, as you get older, you tend to lose track of, so I suppose the answer is no.
As for insight, yes, age brings a certain awareness, but nobody's interested. Time to write your memoirs, which no one will understand. Tempus fugit.

Answer 11

No, being older doesn't mean anything! Having age as a restrivction, or saying your right/better because your older isn't true! So no, no more insight than anyone else, coz in the end, nothing matters! We are all going to die anyway!