As you age, how have your priorities changed? Can you relate to any of Florence ' s characteristics?
Created: 08/31/15
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Absolutely! Although I certainly like it when people like me, I am not so concerned about that any longer. Like Florence, there are a few people who are extremely important to me, but I don't always extend that level of concern and interest to the more ancillary acquaintances.
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Aging has changed how I relate to people. I accept them for who they are. I don't care if they accept me. However, that being said, I am not rude. I treat people as I wish to be treated. I do not always think of my self first because, with age, I have learned that I am not nearly as important as I once may have thought. And neither is anyone else!! I'm too old to do things I don't want to do but I respect others for still wanting to do those things. I am not Florence. She was so convinced of her superiority that she treated others with disdain and rudeness. She lost out on so much by being 'true to herself'. I don't think she was true to herself. I think she was too self-centered to take the time to know and care about others.
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Totally interesting comments from one and all and I pretty much agree with everyone. I am much pickier about the things I get involved in as they must truly interest me and if any group starts getting too involved in bickering and back stabbing I am gone. I have acquired a total aversion to confrontation and am no longer very easy to talk into doing things I really do not want to. Getting older has some physical limitations but is very freeing in many ways.
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Yes. Getting older has changed the way I relate to people because it has changed how I relate to the world in general. I have always been a big picture person. From childhood I have always striven to understand the reasons for, the causes of everyday occurrences. Aging has only served to exacerbate that. I have zero tolerance for gossip and hashing over individual events, preferring to try to put things and people into a larger - even global - perspective. So if somebody wants to "dish" I will be polite but try as quickly a possible to nudge the conversation toward looking at context. If they won't go there our small talk will come to fast, 'It was great seeing you. My love to your mother.' brushoff. I used to be so much better at small talk and chit chat. No more. Life is too short.
Join Date: 07/29/14
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Definitely! I know what is important to me and know that I only want to spend time and energy with the people who matter to me and the things I love. I am less willing to pretend to enjoy things. I have not yet reached the point that I totally don't care what others think but I'm going in that direction...
Join Date: 12/17/12
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Definitely! My priorities have changed; I've learned to be less concerned with what other people think or do, and focus on following my own path and being grateful for the many blessings I enjoy. I'm more apt to let petty obstacles or injustices go, and not stress myself or dwell on them. Above all, I try to stay calm and practice kindness whenever possible.
Join Date: 01/22/15
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Aging has made me more appreciative and accepting of people in my personal and public life. I realize we all have a history that influences our perceptions and interactions. I think maybe Florence had not reached that level of acceptance for whatever reason. The story may have ended differently if written by a woman.
Join Date: 03/03/12
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Oh, yes. Aging has given me much more freedom to express my opinions and not fear the reactions of others. However, getting older has made me realize that everyone has a story to tell and I have learned to be a more careful listener. As far as Florence is concerned, she considered her opinions to be more valuable than those of others and I think that cost her dearly (although she may not have realized her loss).
Join Date: 07/02/15
Posts: 100
For sure. I'm more outspoken than I was years ago, but I'm also more tolerant of others and their viewpoints because I have learned to value different personality types that process information differently. That has made me more patient, not so quick to cut someone off or insist that I am right (although the temptation to do that is still part of my personality).
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