Facing the golden years (11-12)

"Los que en realidad aman la vida son aquellos que están envejeciendo." SOFOCLES

AM I TOO OLDER TO FIND LOVE

So really the first question you need to ask yourself is, “Do I really want a partner?” Really? Your next question to consider is why you aren’t more social with other gays and lesbians, especially outside of work? What might you be avoiding or hiding from? To find a partner, you must be willing to get out and exposed to others. Dating requires this. If you stay around colleagues and straight people, you won’t find a partner as quickly, if at all. Most gay men labor under the fallacy that our culture is interested only in attractive, successful men. The media and the magazines all promote this stereotype. In fact, even though I’m heartened to see gay men on television more and more, sometimes I think it makes things harder for us gays in managing our ordinary personal lives. TV sitcoms and dramas tend to focus primarily on young, attractive, successful and relationship-oriented characters. Many gay viewers naturally assume that’s the norm that we too should aim for. We’re being forced into the same position as our straight counterparts-which is both good and bad. You should stop looking to the media for an ideal of what is right for–or wrong with– you, personally. Go inside yourself and decide what it is that you want. If you are going to find Mr. Right, you will need to market yourself. And that means becoming more social with other gay men who will either be attracted to you or know someone with whom they can fix you up. And finally, the prejudice of ageism is a real issue that does affect everybody-gay, straight and in between. I do notice its being more prevalent among males. And given that we gay men form an all-male culture, ageism is present inevitably. Yes, it would be easy to use that as an excuse to give up! And yes, you might get a lot of grudging discouragement from people who are age-negative themselves, who accept the reality of ageism, and would warn you there is no hope. To that I say No! ! We cannot let limitations, real or imagined, block us from getting what we want. Neither should you.

THE WORST CONTRIES TO GROW OLD

In Latin America, the proportion of the older population is expected to double by 2050. Among countries in the region, most of which scored relatively well, Honduras scored worst. Older residents of Honduras had the worst income security out of every country in Latin America and the Caribbean — only 3.8% of people over 65 received a pension. Further, the relative poverty rate of the ageing population in Honduras was among the highest in the world, at more than 27%.

"Forty is the old age of youth; fifty is the youth of old age. " VICTOR HUGO HAVING A GAY OLD TIME