ELDERS

One of the problems with this country is that we’re wasting the elderly. But nature wastes nothing, so why isn’t their knowledge recycled into the children? To me, there’s nothing more wonderful than an old person who loves children and wants to teach them.

—Eartha Kitt

We have certainly become creative at recycling everything except our most precious resource—people. Many of our elderly still want desperately to “give,†to be treated as valued and respected members of our society. We can begin in our African-American community by recognizing the treasure we have in our elders and by finding ways to invite them into our endeavors.

On this day, I will take five minutes to discuss with my child elderly people we respect, people we see as a repository of wisdom. It may be a grandparent or aunt, a neighbor or a famous person.