On April 20, ASA publishes a Generations Journal on Mental Health, Aging, and Resilience. The below piece serves as an appetizer for that issue, from someone working on the frontlines of mental health care.
When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be 21, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years.
—Mark Twain
I have worked in the field of aging for 36 years, and not a week goes by when I don’t reflect on this quote from Mark Twain. At age 19 and working in my first job on a mobile mental health team for older adults (or “geriatric homebound team” in the parlance of the time), I considered myself an expert on aging—and I definitely thought I knew more about life than the older adults I was assigned to help. […]
Click here to read to the full piece. This story was originally published by Generations Today on March 19, 2024.
