Gulp! I’m going to confess. No, it’s too embarrassing. Yes, I’m going to.
I’m of Donald Trump’s generation.
It’s like admitting to Europeans that I’m from the country that elected Trump. Until he became president, I was not ashamed of being an American or of being a septuagenarian.
Contrary to the fact that we old people (and I deliberately use the word “old”) defy stereotypes, they persist. Grandpa, who dominates the conversation at the Thanksgiving dinner table with harangues against gay marriage and immigrants. Aunt Helen, who can’t follow a train of thought and free associates her way through every conversation. Media often portray us as narrow-minded and critical. We’ve lost our mental acuity and wouldn’t know how to run a lemonade stand.
Donald Trump perpetuates such stereotypes.
Most of the people I know, who are my age, are thoughtful. They read books with multi-syllabic words and complex sentences. The books cover topics like climate change and history and politics. Retirees I know take classes at area universities; they don’t let their minds become stagnant. If pensions and mobility allow, they travel with Road Scholar and return home knowledgeable about distant countries. They do not mock other people and cultures. They do not abandon peers forced to live solely on Social Security or on minimum wage, but volunteer for Meals on Wheels, Habitat for Humanity, and the local food bank.
Trump’s presidency, on the other hand, contributes to negative images of aging.
And I resent it.
Nancy Werking Poling is author of Before It Was Legal: a black-white marriage (1945-1987) and Had Eve Come First and Jonah Been a Woman.
Nancy Werking Poling 
Let’s hear it for today’s seniors!
Hip-hip-horray!
Well spoken. I too live in the circle of elders who carry the torch of thought, growth, and, for me, quiet action.
Thanks for your comment, Roberta.
I enjoyed reading your blog, Nancy. I can’t remember exactly what my point was about DT when we talked — something about sex 😊. And it’s complicated. I think he perpetuates the “dirty old man” stereotype. Old people having sex is seen as weird and unattractive. He’s a sex predator, so he’s sure not helping to show a healthy aging sexuality. I don’t like to think about DT’s sex life these days (I don’t think he and Melania have much of a marriage), but I doubt that he’s keeping up with his image and activity level of the past. Most Presidents, especially as they age, prefer to have their sex lives kept private. Most of us wish that DT’s was more private too!
(In case people wonder, I’m a retired sexuality educator)
Sylvia, thanks for distinguishing between healthy sex between older adults and “dirty old man” sex.