Can you fall in love with old age?

Abstract

This text addresses the perception of old age in the 21st century. The aim of the article is to draw attention to the issue of the diverse perception of aging and old age. The addressees of the article are employees of social services, NGO activists, the elderly and their caregivers, people who contribute to the environment in which the elderly live, as well as students of medical, social sciences and pedagogical fields of studies. The selection of literature for this study was not accidental, as the authors of selected works are the elite of world gerontology, andragogy, pedagogy, psychology, sociology, whose main area of scientific interest are issues related to old age and the aging process. These include: Aleksander Kamiński, Zofia Szarota, Artur Fabiś, Barbara Szatur-Jawoska, Paul Baltes and others. The article attempts to show old age as a period of heyday and living it in a dignified rather than chronological way. In addition, the advantages and disadvantages and of this period of human life are presented, as wells as recognised examples of good practice, institutional support and non-institutional support.. The text highlights some of the determinants that are characteristic for ageing and old age, such as: successful ageing, graceful ageing and quality of life. Such an approach to the problem helps to reflect more deeply on the issue raised, while helping to exclude metastereotypes and contribute to treating old age as a value. It will also make us reflect on the passage of time and on the last period of life, which does not have to fill us with fear, being scared of the unknown, a sense of helplessness, and for which we should learn and prepare throughout our life. The article also highlights two very important facts that old age cannot be confined, and its limits cannot be defined, as well as the heterogeneity of this social group, which does not allow for the development of a single model of old age, which would become a model used by the sciences dealing with this field of study. Finally, an attempt was made to answer the key question – Can you fall in love with old age?