Senior Entitlement, Or Is It?

I've loved "little, old people" for as long as I can remember. I always thought they walked, drove, cooked and even talked slower because they had come to the place in their lives where they no longer had to hurry. Maybe they had "earned" the right to slow down since they had obviously made it this far.

But lately, it seems all these precious seniors I've always loved to love, have become rather snippy and quite rude. What? This isn't what I remember as a little girl. I was always the one fussing at the adult who tried to hurry the senior citizen off the road. I was the one reminding people to be patient when walking behind an elderly person because after all, we would be old one day.

I've run into more than my share of people in their 6th, 7th and 8th decades of life who are just plain mean. Why do they say things like, "If you knew what you were doing, this wouldn't take so long?" and "If your Daddy had whipped you more often, you wouldn't be doing that."? Do these people not understand that chances are pretty good that someone like you and I will most likely be caring for them in the not too distant future? Do they really want to be that harsh with us?

I considered the fact they may see this kind of behavior as a sense of entitlement because they have, in fact, made it this far. Then I sat back and considered that maybe I've just become that grumpy, yet wiser person approaching her 4th decade of life that doesn't have to tolerate rudeness from anybody, not even the "little, old people" I've always honored and respected so deeply.

What do you think? Should we speak up and ask, "I'm sorry, is it necessary for you to speak to me that way?" Should we stand our ground and say, "If you can't speak to me with some respect, you'll have to find someone else to direct you to your lost car."?

Don't get me wrong, I still love the elderly.........some of them anyway.

This entry doesn't pertain to those people who have dementia, alzheimer's or any other physical ailment that impairs them. It's strictly for the elderly that choose to be mean!