Insights about the Life of Senior Citizens - Essay Example

? Interview The purpose of this paper is to get insights about the life of senior citizens. These findings are taken after conducting interview with a senior citizen. The findings have given a clearer picture on how life was in their childhood. Their school life, way of living and their activities are something which I was not aware of and got good information about these after the interview. This was a good experience for me with 3 senior citizens who took me through their childhood days. Interview An interview conducted with three different elders, John, William and Martin who were over 65 years old, gave me a lot of information which I was not aware of before. All three of them were from different places. John was from Arizona while William was from Sydney and Martin from London. A number of topics such as their early life, school life, interests, hobbies, jobs, experiences etc were discussed with them. Their answers have changed my perception about the senior citizens. They are the role models for the younger generation. Early life A peep into the early life of these senior citizens was a refreshing experience. They always used to live together with the entire family which gives an excellent image of their lifestyle. Their parents had always thought them to value the relations. Young children along with their grandparents and parents made up for the perfect family. Stories of children playing together with each other, fighting for toys were a refreshing feeling. All the vacations to the farm, the celebrations, birthday parties with all the brothers and sisters are enough to prove the bonding which they had with each other. The best part of their life has been the way their bonding has been carried out for years. They never miss out on any opportunity to meet on occasions. This bonding has been carried out over the years and has been passed on to their children as well. Interview with them also gave insights about their first home. Though they were not able to recollect all the information as to where their first house was, most of them said that their first home was somewhere near the valley. They played with their friends, brothers and sisters in the lawn which was a part of their first home. The most exciting part of their life was that most of them used to play with the cattle while they took them for grazing. I am a part of a generation which expects students to create advanced gadgets. But after knowing about the life of these senior citizens, I have realized that I have missed out something in life. John was born in the state of Arizona, during the Second World War. Though it was the time of war where thousands of soldiers and sailors were sunk by the Japanese warplanes, their families always stayed together. They explained how their parents made sure that their children were not affected by the war and gave them all the values to be a good citizen. This picture of their family tells us the sense of bonding they had with each other. The love, bonding and care has been carried out over the years and something which everyone should learn from them. A lot was learnt about these senior citizens and their early life. It changed my thinking about the bonding between the brothers and sisters. My perception on them was that everyone during their growing up had forgotten each other and got along with life. They have proved my view on them wrong. Even after years, they have maintained the same love and bonding with each other. It is a lesson for most of us in the younger generation who are in the race to win and succeed. It has changed my perspective towards life. Everyone should grow like them. Happiness is not about just achieving ones personal goals; it is about being lovable towards the ones who care for you. Though they have not grown with the most advanced of technologies around, they have experienced the smallest of happiness in life. Living, sharing and creating happiness with their loved ones has enriched their life. It is the path which they have left for us and we should make sure we follow. School life School is the place where most of us shape up. Their way of schooling and practices has given me a completely different picture than what I had in my mind. An image of studious students in schools to strict teachers, the interview has completely changed my view. John admitted with a smile that he was one of the naughtiest children in the school. He told that one of his favorite thing which he liked doing in school was to eat more than the allotted lunch time. He said that he was chubby and fat and liked to eat a lot. Explaining his naughtiness, he said that more often than not, he used to snatch the lunch box of others. He also explained how lightly his friends took when he behaved naughty. This is one of the best traits of friends. He said that he was nicknamed “Balloon” by his friends and it was because of his size. William said that he always liked to imitate his friends and other children in school during his childhood. He said that sometimes he used to imitate his teachers when they were taking classes. Martin never used to complete his homework on time and admits how he used to kneel in front of the whole class room for not completing it. These light hearted moments spent in school are memorable ones. My image on their studious image during school days has completely changed. One must look to them as those who learn with fun. As a young generation, the most important lesson they have given in life to us is to enjoy every moment and live it with happiness. High School Martin was most excited when he took me through his High school memories. It was amazing to hear from him as he told about his hilarious incidents. My perception of a high school during his period was of a strict teacher who used a scale to beat the children at the unsuccessful completion of their homework. Martin admitted the same that his school was what I had imagined. He said that even though the high school was strict, he has had a lot of happy memories of that school. He explained how he along with his close friends used to bunk classes and watch movies. The most surprising thing which martin told was that they did it to challenge his teachers considering their strict nature which tortured them. He gave even more surprising details when he remembered the compound wall from where they used to jump out. He also remembered the theatre where he watched the movies. He stressed how close he was with his friends who stood out with him at all times. Even more exciting was William’s memories. He said that once during his class hours, when his classmate was on leave, he imitated his voice while the teacher was taking attendance. He said he was successful in doing that and was happy when he helped his friends. Such was the friendship between them. Martin said one of his best experiences was when he hit the home run in the finals of a baseball game and helped his team win the title. Martin said that his favorite story was from the movie, the Tall story. John said that he liked the story of the book “Five immigrants”. William was a fan of the movie “Gangster story” and said that the movie’s story was the best ever he had come across. It made me realize how courageous they were during their school days even with the strict teachers around. This courage is surprising considering the punishment given during those days was immense and difficult to bear. Another fascinating conclusion which could be drawn from this particular incident is the friendship. The true nature of friendship can be witnessed in this incident. It is the path on which everyone should walk and grow. No matter what happens in life, one should always be with a friend at all times. It makes me salute the senior citizens who have lived a life of pride and esteem. Academics, Sports and other Activities One thing which I was not aware about them was their academics. I was curious to know about their academics and other activities. After the interview, I was able to conclude the fact that computers were not a subject during their time. Most of them were interested in subjects related to History, Science, Mathematics and Geography. The only reason was because of the lack of development in technology during that time. Electronics though had developed, but was not a part of the subject because of the lack of experts in that subject. It did not come to me as a surprise. Even though I was not surprised with the academics, the club activities, sports which were carried out in the high school surprised me the most. In a strict school, I did not expect them to be extraordinary in sports. I expected them to be excellent in their subjects and not concentrate on anything else. But the interaction with John changed everything. He said that there were a lot of clubs which organized social activities, cultural activities in the high school. The school allowed the children to dedicate a major portion their time in these clubs which were very useful not only for personal development, but also important for the development of the nation and society. The major aim of these clubs was to create awareness to the people. This has given an idea about the caring nature of these people when they were in high school. One should observe these acts conducted by these great people and follow. We live in a generation where everyone is busy with their own work and own safety. They have created a path which everyone should follow. My curiosity extended in getting to know their participation in sports. It was not surprising to find out the passion with which they follow and play sports. John said he was a famous Baseball player during his college days and would never miss out on any game. He was very studious and mentioned that he was not very interested in songs. Eventually he mentioned the trip to Switzerland during his childhood which was conducted by his school as the best trip. Jobs and Hobbies One of the best leisure time activities which all three of them were involved was reading books. John’s favorite book was The Help by Kathryn Stockett. Others said that reading thriller books combined with drama were their favorite. One of the most interesting talks which came out during interview was their need for extra money. Most of them worked at typing offices as a part time job and earned around $50 extra per month. This shows their dedication and hard work to earn. This income of theirs combined with their regular income of $125 to make a tally of $175 per month. These have thought me to higher my aim and earn more. They always told that one should earn to save for the future. One of the most important lessons the spend thrift generation should learn from them. Fashion and life Martin said that his favorite wear always used to be suit and tie which gave him the perfect gentleman look. He acknowledged the advancements in technology and the way the transport has improved from moving in slow cars to super fast planes. He recalls the time when he used to travel in his car with a minimal speed. But now with technology advancing, he says it has changed a lot and people are now traveling faster. William mentioned that the fashion during his time was a casual shirt which were plaid and buttoned down the front. He said with a smile that he used to prefer that when ever he wanted to impress people. When asked about transportation, he said that though it has advanced 100 times than what it was during his time, he was not happy with it. He says that it has harmed the environment with too much of pollution and noise. John was more of the modern kind. He said that he preferred the sports jacket which was designed during that time. He recalled his days back telling that he used to ride his Harley Davidson bike and wear that jacket. It gave him the look of a rock star. His view on the transportation was not surprising. He said that it has improved a lot and has helped people in a positive way. He quickly reminds of the fact that Harley Davidson bikes have also grown along with the advanced technologies. Once the talk on transportation was over, they shared their experiences on driving. Both Martin and William said that their father had taught them how to drive. Martin said his first car was Ford which he bought after his graduation from his college, Texas University. He studied History as his major. He said that it was with the help of his college friends that he persuaded his father to buy that car and he is still in touch with them William’s first car was Chevrolet which he bought it after joining his organization once he graduated from the Stanford University with Masters in Physics. While John said that he had learned it from friends during his college days and his first car was a classic Cadillac. John said his first college was the European university and his major was Computer science. He says that he is still in touch with his friends who were in college. Family John said that his marriage was a love story and he had met his spouse in a college trip to Switzerland. When he was walking in the snow, he saw Mary, his wife playing around in the hill nearby. He admits that he fell for her pretty eyes. He decided to propose her after couple of months and luckily she accepted him. He said that he was around 28 years old when he got married in California. He said that initially their married life was all about spending time with each other. After few years, they got their first child and everything changed. Raising their first child were the best moments of his life. On a serious note, he said that raising a family meant lot of responsibilities. Martin’s story was a similar one except that his wife had proposed him first. He said that he had muscles during his college days which attracted her. Once they started to speak with each other, Stacey, his wife proposed him. He got married when he was 29 years old in New Jersey. After two years, they were expecting their first child. Once they got their first child, Stacey resigned from her job to take care of their child. They made sure that their child got everything. He said that raising a family was done with a lot of love he had done and said that he loved his family a lot. William was different. He said that he got married with his childhood friend Jane. They both were good friends since their high school and later decided to tie the knot. He said that it was very easy to raise his family since his wife supported him a lot. He said that their first child meant the world to them. He got married at the age of 26 in Boston. This information gave a picture of the contrasting images of today’s world and the world of the past. It also told how people were happy and at peace in the little world which they lived. After the interview, I asked myself many questions. I questioned whether I was living the right life. My inner voice answered me differently. I have taken a lot of lessons from these veterans on how to lead a life. These lessons confine not only to me, but to everyone in my generation. Works Cited Marsh, Personal Communication, 16:00, 11th October 2011. Shane, Personal Communication, 18:30, 17th October 2011. Kane, Personal Communication, 16:00, 25th October 2011. Read More