For the senior citizens of Y!A?

[Carey]

How do you view life now? Do you ever miss being young, and do you have any regrets? How do you view the world differently than the younger society?

I am asking this because I am a teenager and I am scared to grow up; for some reason I feel bad for the elderly because their life would be going by so quickly.

Does anyone have any advice for me? Wisdom perhaps?

I am not asking this to offend or degrade anyone: I am an open book. Thank you for any answers and participation!

Carey

[Eileen B]

No way offended. Carey , enjoy your teenage years , your twenties will be great ( you become an adult and if you are smart they can be very fun times . )Thirty's are wonderful , things begin to make sense and belive it or not ... your still young and you begin to start having things and watching it all come together . I'm 42 and am happier than ever and look forward to my 50's . Getting older is not a negative thing at all hon ,and can you imagine being in your seventies and watching a few generations that you took part in creating ...All of life can be wonderful and remember you are mainly in control of the outcome ! Good luck Carey !

[Suzianne]

When you are young, you are under a lot of pressure to save for the future, plan for the future, prepare for the future, etc. One day, you will discover the future is now and you have more past than future. It is very liberating. At my age, I can live one day at a time without any guilt.

My only advice to you is to insure your independence by saving and investing ten percent of everything you earn, starting at as young an age as possible. Anyone can manage of 90% of what they bring home. That ten percent you put in the bank or invest in mutual funds or other other investments will grow, and each dollar you save will begin to work for you so that when you are old you won't have to work.

[Granny 1]

Life is really what you make it, don't be afraid, enjoy every moment of it. I have and no regrets. Just be yourself and don't let peer pressure pull you under.

[gramof6]

How sweet of you! You are a blessed young Lady I can see that.Growing up is the best time of your life.We are 59 and still feel young, in fact age is a state of mind remember that.I would change a few things. as you know we all make our share of mistakes so here are a few words of wisdom.Education should be first, the world will whip you around pretty good without it. It doesn't have to be college. but get into whatever holds your interest. Think about your future always, plan for retirement always I can not stress that to much.Enjoy your friends and family, treat them like precious gems because that is what they are.Have fun but don't be a follower Always stay in charge of your life..Prayer goes a long way and it will work miracles.Each decade of your life will be different.You have so much to look foward to. I love my life now but it was so much fun I would go back in a heartbeat.Our kids and grandchildren are my greatest joy.God blessed us so much but I have to tell you I prayed for it.My kids are a 10 in my books. Remember honor and respect will get you where ever you want to go. You are already a wise young lady so grab life bt the tail and run girl!It is a wonderful life..God Bless you and enjoy the ride.

[gramof6]

How sweet of you! You are a blessed young Lady I can see that.Growing up is the best time of your life.We are 59 and still feel young, in fact age is a state of mind remember that.I would change a few things. as you know we all make our share of mistakes so here are a few words of wisdom.Education should be first, the world will whip you around pretty good without it. It doesn't have to be college. but get into whatever holds your interest. Think about your future always, plan for retirement always I can not stress that to much.Enjoy your friends and family, treat them like precious gems because that is what they are.Have fun but don't be a follower Always stay in charge of your life..Prayer goes a long way and it will work miracles.Each decade of your life will be different.You have so much to look foward to. I love my life now but it was so much fun I would go back in a heartbeat.Our kids and grandchildren are my greatest joy.God blessed us so much but I have to tell you I prayed for it.My kids are a 10 in my books. Remember honor and respect will get you where ever you want to go. You are already a wise young lady so grab life bt the tail and run girl!It is a wonderful life..God Bless you and enjoy the ride.

[luvspbr2]

I'm 51 and I enjoy this age. I've had good times and not so good, but it's all made me who I am today. Though I messed up sometimes and there were some hard times, there's no real regrets. There's a lot of wonderful memories and if I changed anything in my life-it would change everything and I might not have those I love or might not be the person I am today. I like who I am and I'm still living life and learning everyday.

Life does go by quickly, that's why you must enjoy and treasure every moment of it. If you want to do something-go for it! The only regrets will be for the things you didn't do, chances that you let slip by. Don't be afraid, Carey, growing older is just a part of life, sometimes the best part. Best wishes!---Luvs

[the bellepepper]

Oh, Sweetheart, do not be afraid of growing older. Be afraid of never being allowed to! Your whole life is still ahead of you and lots of happy and wonderful things will happen. We all make mistakes but somehow, things usually will work out. I wish that I had thought a little more about the future when I was your age and I wish that I had been a lot smarter in some of the choices that I made. But I don't miss being young, except I wish my body hadn't got ahead of my mind! We have lived in a different time than you have now, just as our parents and grandparents lived in different times than ours. We are trusting you to take hold of this world and make it better for yourselves. It is what we tried to do and sometimes it didn't work but we gave it our best. Now it is up to you and your peers to look ahead and try to change things for the better. Be happy and be smart in your decisions. I hope that you get to live a long and healthy life and won't regret a thing!

[Ju ju]

Sr Cit"s have lived long enough.........for their minds to be changed......about many things. .
Learning to take pleasure in the small things is great gain.
Life is an adventure so don't be afraid to live each stage: teenager, young adult and wife/mother etc. to the fullest. We are a different person at each stage of life. At sixty I enjoy each day live in it as myself. I've stopped thinking life will be perfect but accept life on life's terms.
Contentment is learned with years of practice. Even acceptance of the end becomes easier. Pray, pray, pray. for wisdom, it changes things.
With maturity you'll understand exactly how to happily become older...and older...and older..
Love ya and God bless "you" as you go.

[margaret h]

To be honest, I would not go back unless I could know then what I know now. I am 60 and it is great. People take me seriously, listen when I speak, and things that I feared when I was young no longer bother me. I am not afraid of the future and I do not look back to the past, except to smile at fond memories. Life is good.