Reader’s opinion|When aging starts to show on the face, the behavior of fellow human beings changes.
Next I will turn eighty next year. Lately, I’ve noticed that the attitude of strangers towards me has changed. When I get on a crowded tram, several fellow passengers may jump up to offer a seat. When I go to a hamburger restaurant, the staff gently guides me to follow the screen and the number of my order. This is great and thoughtful, thank you for that!
However, when talking with peers, it has come out that sometimes in these situations we are treated patronizingly, as if we were children. Because of Silka’s astonishment, we may have reacted to this kind of behavior sometimes rudely, and then we have felt a bad conscience, even about the subject itself. So sorry and thank you!
It’s not so much about you friendly neighbors. The question is about ourselves, who are not yet familiar with the change. Poet Aila Meriluoton I said, “Hey you old face in the bathroom mirror, you’ve changed. But don’t worry, we are friends. Although I’m prettier.”
Marja Pekkanen
Helsinki
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