Numerous studies, including one from Johns Hopkins University, have shown that adults who interact regularly with children report increased well-being and a healthier view of life. One study found that preschoolers in regular contact with adults develop better social skills.
Kids who grow up exposed to the aging process tend to see it as natural.
They are less fearful of aging and exhibit greater tolerance and respect for elders.
These kinds of findings have moved many communities to begin proactively joining the young and old by organizing activities at so-called shared sites. They include programs like the one at Heritage Day Health Centers, in Columbus, Ohio, which operates a program for older adults in the same building as a childcare center sponsored by the YWCA. Both sponsors pool their resources and promote activities including finger painting, cooking, and volleyball where both young and old participate. The nonprofit
Generations United (www.gu.org) has as its goal matching different-aged people in an educational setting so that they can explore areas of common ground while celebrating the richness of each generation. The group's core belief is that young people can relieve isolation, loneliness, and boredom among older adults while the adults, in turn, can be a positive role model.
There are many other options and organizations that will help you connect with younger-or older-people in an exciting learning environment, including programs at most universities or through mentoring groups like
Community in Schools (www.CISNET.org) and Big Brothers Big Sisters of America (www.bbbsa.org).
Mentor Your Way to Meaning
No new connection, in my view, is more beneficial and personally fulfilling than the one that emerges when you invest a chunk of your time in someone else's future. What is a mentor? Generally, it is anyone who takes the time to share their life lessons with someone else who is typically younger and open to learning from the voice of experience. This is not just a guardian and her dependent or a teacher and her pupil, but any relationship where you are allowed to pass on a skill or your wisdom.
Mentoring occurs in many places and has been with us for centuries.
It is one of the oldest forms of influence the world has ever known and has been traced to the ancient Greek storytellers. In his classic tales, The
Iliad and The Odyssey, Homer tells of Odysseus, who asked his friend
Mentor to look after and educate his son Telemachus while he fought in the Trojan War.
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