The New Elders

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EU: I just want to point out that I find myself savoring the world on Saturday night and I find myself trying to save it on Sunday morning.

[Laughter]

Ah, that's what this is all about: Just one last chance to redeem yourself? One last gasp for the boomers?

RL: In all seriousness, I'd be careful not to limit this to broad labels, like 'boomers.' The data and demographics are irrefutable: We're going to be a gerontocracy, and things like purpose and community are missing or at risk all over the world. So we can't romanticize it. We can no longer say, 'Oh, the elders are great in all these other places.' There needs to be a global conversation that transcends labels.

All that said, in this country there are boomers who will live longer and with more resources. That's a first in history. So what do they want? What is their destiny?

Why don't they just want to take a load off, go golfing or travel?

RL: Part of the boomer ethic has to do with an enduring desire to save the world. Part of it has to do with higher education levels and an increasing attention to personal development. Part of it is that we simply have longer, healthier lives. Retirement is a social invention, after all.

EU: I know I dreaded the idea of getting older. I thought I would be decrepit and marginalized and stuck in an old-folks' home. That's what we do to our elders. We call them empty-nesters. To me, it all comes back to this idea of community. We don't have real communities in this culture. Not multigenerational communities. We've got gated communities, where we stick our infirm or our aged in institutions. In other cultures, the elders were venerated.

So how do you begin the transformation? What must the boomers do to prepare themselves for service?

EU: I imagine introducing people to a whole range of different meditative practices. It might be journaling; it might be meditation; it could be from Western or Eastern esoteric tradition. Then there's the possibility of having a deep experience in nature. That can be profoundly transformative, since it really helps people listen outwardly as well as inwardly.

The whole idea is to help people find ways to identify what their unique gift is. I believe that each of us comes in with a particular gift to give to the world, and people need to connect with opportunities to give their gift. It might be environmental restoration. It might be working in an AIDS clinic. It might be conflict resolution. It might be building a school, or teaching English or computer skills. It could be domestic. It could be overseas. There are no bounds.

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