While Ellen Goodman ponders whether Boomers at 60, are a Benefit or Burden
Super Bowl XL is now officially the site of the first successful protest movement of the aging baby boomers: for the right to rock 'n' roll
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We seem to be developing two distinct story lines about the boomers at 60. The generation is portrayed as either a crushing burden or a huge benefit.
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The truth is that baby boomers have never had much more in common than a date book. The folks who turn 60 this year are as different as Bill Clinton and George Bush, Donald Trump and Cher. Even if boomers share a fascination with their aging process, aging itself may be as individualistic as a set of genes.
Ronni Bennett, settling in, is quite sure that aging is great.
The young are welcome to their youth, which has its own pleasures. I wouldn't trade my newfound comfort to return to those years because now, even in a culture that wants me to disappear from view, to not remind them that they too will be (and look) old one day, being old feels like I've won a prize. The gains so outweigh the losses and are so personally empowering and exciting that I almost wish it could have happened sooner - except each of us comes to understanding and acceptance in our own time.
Posted by Jill Fallon at February 3, 2006 3:39 PM | Permalink