What We Call Old

Students' perspectives on aging

 

By Clare Collins

What does it mean to be old? Ask a group of undergraduates in their late teens and early 20s, and you'll get as many answers as there are stages of life. For some, age is less a number and more a measure of wisdom, resilience or rhythm. For others, it's the point at which the world begins to move faster than you do—or when you finally have the time to sit back and take it all in. Read on for thoughts from some of our Bachelor of Science in Public Health students. 

"Someone who is progressive and has an adaptable mindset will forever be young." 

 

"Being old is like a song that shifts tempo over time." 

Anna | junior

To be old is to have lived; to be familiar with most of life's experiences. It's gray hair and wrinkles and wisdom. 

A few years ago, I probably would've said 60 [was the age someone became old], but with parents that age now...I'm scared to confront that, so I'm going to say 65!

Rachel | senior

When I think about someone being "old," I think more about their experience and the wisdom they have collected through their life. I think it shows perspective, and I view it as an honorable position. When I think about a specific time when someone deems someone else as "old," I don't believe it's only an age, but I think it comes from the younger generation when the new culture catches up with the one the elder generation lived. 

"The point where you stop being fluid and move with the times." 

 

"...a state where you have had a lot of experiences and have a lot of wisdom." 

Evan | senior

Being "old" is not necessarily an age; more so, I think of it as a state where you have a lot of wisdom. As you grow older, you experience more things and know how to tackle them, and I think that part of being old is knowing how to deal with various experiences that will be thrown at you in life. 

There is no set age when someone becomes "old." Not 16, not 18, not 21, not 25; all of these arbitrary ages that we experience in our youth are merely checkpoints along the road. Becoming old is gradual, and it happens slowly as you have more experiences and gain more wisdom. 

Katelyn | freshman

To be "old" means to have surpassed a point of being up to date (with technology, perspectives, culture and current events) where you cannot change or are refusing to do so. Being old doesn't have much to do with age in my opinion as much as your school of thought and perspective and has an adaptable mindset will forever be young to me, while someone who is set in their ways will be the opposite. The point where you stop being fluid and move with the times is when you become old. 

To me, someone is considered old after they turn 60 (age-wise). But generally speaking, I do not see numerical age as the one true factor that determines someone's age. 

Mia | freshman

To me, being "old" means that you've matured through life experiences and have lived long enought o fully konw your place in the world. 

The age of being old for me would be about 70 years old. 

Kabba | junior

Being old, to me, is whenever someone's mobility and attentiveness begin to decline due to aging. Around 65+ is when I'd start to consider someone old as that's when those signs become very apparent. 

Grishma | freshman

To be old for me means sitting down o the front porch of my dream house as a retired physician assistant while my husband is by my side, going back to memory lane and realizing I've done everything I had put down on my vision board as a teenager. 

Someone becomes old when they get calls from their kids and grandkids saying they won't be able to make it Thanksgiving. Someone becomes old when they must call an assistant to take them shopping rather than their own kids that they once had to take shopping. Someone gets old when they sit down and look at their high school yearbook and realize most of their friends aren't here anymore. 

Allyson | freshman

Being old is like a song that shifts tempo over time. At first, life plays a fast beat, with every day rushing by like a catchy rhythm you can't stop dancing to. But as the years stack up, the music slows, notes become deeper, and the melody feels richer, like a soulful ballad. The lyrics might carry a few cracks, but there's wisdom in every chord, every pause between the notes, where you begin to hear the depth that youth missed. To be old is to be the crescendo after the quiet moments, where every note feels like it was earned, and the silence that follows speaks louder than any sound. It's a symphony of experience, whether you're moving to the beat or reflecting on how you got there. 

"Whenever someone's mobility and attentiveness begin to decline due to aging."

 

"To be old is to have lived."