Kids + Seniors = Holiday Family Fun

Spending time with people that are perceived as different than us can be difficult. We oftentimes feel as if we have nothing in common with them and so we feel awkward and uncomfortable; we don’t want to waste our time and energies being there.

Throughout the holiday season as you spend time with older family and friends, be prepared for the unexpected in regard to behavior and interactions based on how life and age affect us.  It’s ALWAYS hard for us to be faced with seeing and interacting with decline in our loved ones.  Our responses to the decline in our loved ones greatly impacts the way our children interact with them also.  It’s our job to help them have a POSITIVE perception of aging, and of their elders. Our kids will mirror how we respond. This is an excellent opportunity to set the standard for their behavior with the elderly (they too will one day become elderly - as unimaginable as that may seem). This is crucial as these little children will be the ones responding to us when we are elderly (yes, you too will one day grow old)! Older adults need the life/livelihood of kids and teens just as the lives of youngsters are enhanced by interactions with their seniors. Help them enjoy these holiday visits by preempting some of the discomfort that they may feel.

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Prepare Them

• Give your kids an idea of what to expect    
• Teach them to not take things personally
• Make family time fun for all

Humanize Them

• Let your kids know about some of the interesting things that your loved ones had participated in during their life. Discuss how they have changed, and how everything changes

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• Highlight some commonalities, give them a frame of reference to establish conversation with your loved ones
• Show them old pictures and tell them old stories. Along with aging comes experience where we can glean wisdom, strength, and tenacity to live life to the fullest!
• Remind the kids that it’s not all about them; it’s about someone else

Wrinkles should merely indicate where smiles have been.   Mark Twain