Being an elderly person living in fear in old-time Phoenix


As I drift into my senior years, I now know why so many elderly people (like me) live in fear. The main reason is that they've had time to learn that there are a LOT of things to be afraid of. With age comes wisdom, and caution! And another reason, which is surprising me, is that they never learned techniques for overcoming their fears.

Speaking for myself, I've always had a lot of fears. Even when things are going along great for me, I tend to think "what if?", and I have built a large arsenal of things that help get me through the fear. Because, believe you me, fear isn't just "False Evidence Appearing Real", it can be a very dangerous world out there! Things can go terribly wrong, and there are a lot of bad guys out there (I call them "stinkers").

I moved to Phoenix, all alone, when I was nineteen and it scared me, a lot. I didn't know nothin', I had to learn. I didn't know the names of streets, I had to read a map. I didn't know anyone, I had to make friends. And while I've never stopped being fearful, I've learned to cope with it. But my heart goes out to people who haven't ever felt the need to do that, and who were happy and brave in their younger years only to turn into elderly people who live in fear.

If "misery loves company", then so does fear. I'm spending more and more time around elderly people, and something that I notice is that they love to share their fears. I can't imagine that this is anything new, to be blamed on the internet, or something. I picture elderly people sitting around old-time Phoenix and expressing their fears: fear of the new people moving in, fear of how crowded it was getting, fear of one of those crazy "horseless carriages" going out of control and running you over. Get a horse!

I learned a long time ago to not worry about things, but instead to worry at them. It's a subtle difference, but it's all about taking some kind of action. I lock my bike whenever I'm not on it, even if I'm going to be away for just a few minutes. I even lock it in my garage! I realize that I can't control everything that could possibly happen, but I can be mindful, and take care. 

Another thing that I've done all my life is to continue to learn stuff. I like to read, and I don't rely on what might have been taught to me back in school (which was a LOOOONG time ago!). The internet supplies a lot of garbage, but it also supplies a lot of good information. I also read a lot of books, which are stored for me in a big building called a library, which is convenient for me, and has been all of my life.

If you're an elderly person living with fear, the only thing that I can recommend is that you learn more about things. Learn about other people, other cultures. Find someone who is so different from you that your first instinct was to fear them, and sit down and talk to them. You may find that they had a fear of you! And make the world a better place, with less fear.
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