This video reminded me of a conversation I had recently with a fellow academic, someone who teaches at AUC but in a different department than the one I work in. She is at least ten years younger than I am and thus at a different point in her teaching career. We were talking about how things were going, and she reported that she was really busy with all sorts of stuff, mostly consisting of projects she was doing to (and now I’m quoting her) “score some CV points.” Because of all these activities she was involved in, she rarely saw her husband, felt exhausted all the time, and talked about herself in such a way that I sensed she was being swept along by forces she had very little control over. I remember feeling a little sad as she told me her story.
I guess my colleague is proof positive that Dr. Laura Carstensen, founding director of the Stanford Center on Longevity, is on to something. Youth is a time of great stress. It’s a period when ambition sometimes gets us looking way out there, into the distant future, so that we often miss what’s right under our noses.
This video also surprised me. Before watching it, I, too, would have guessed that younger people are happier than their elders. As a matter of fact, I’m still not entirely convinced by what Carstensen says. She makes the point that youth is a time of great uncertainty. But aren’t all people, of every age group, uncertain, especially given the times we live in?
Anyway, she’s got me curious, so much so that I’m bound and determined to conduct my own experiment. I’m going to ask everyone I come in contact with if they agree with Carstensen’s conclusion. I’m truly interested in hearing what people have to say about this issue.
If she’s right, it’s certainly good news for someone like me. Actually, it’s good news for all of us.
July 14th, 2010 at 9:59 pm
Thank you for sharing this video. The content provoked thoughts in me about this issue of increased contentment as people age.
Although I just turned fifty-one, I am passing through a latent identity crisis quite typical of the middle school students I teach.
I agree with Dr. Laura Carstensen’s premise but not because I have finally filtered out those risky adventures of youth. To the contrary, I desire to explore new pursuits more than ever because I know the value of hard work and perseverance.
I now have the advantage of life experience and possess the effective tools needed to create a more contented life.
July 15th, 2010 at 4:20 am
Thanks for your thoughtful response to my blog, JoDee. I, too, have questions about some of Dr. Carstensen’s analysis and find that I am not contented just to sit back and move quietly into old age because I’m no longer looking “down the road.” Also, when looking at my own family, I see that some of those who are aging seem to do so gracefully, while others, not so much. I think it’s a little dangerous to make such sweeping generalizations as people age in so many different ways…
troy