A Must Read: Getting over the "Age Syndrome" (part 1)

Teen addressing teachers

By Boluwatife Ezekiel Olaleye

...in the fight for clarity between Age and Wisdom

Ok, let me tell you something you already know, something that has become the norm in the society, probably not new anymore...

That time flies, yes, that age is nothing but a number, whether in relationships or in maturity, that in youth we learn, in age we understand but you have to know that age doesn’t bring with it wisdom, sometimes, it comes alone.

You might not get this but, whether you are five, seven, ten, eighteen, thirty, fifty, any age whatsoever, age is an issue of mind over matter.

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A teacher will say, “I can’t go to that class.” And his colleagues will ask, “Why? Are you afraid of them? Common you are the teacher, you have got to show them who is the boss!” but no, that’s not the issue. “If you are not careful or sound enough, you will be disgraced in that class. I don’t know...they are just brilliant and when they argue about some fact with you (the teacher) you will be shocked that they are actually right. They are just too hot.” And then it will dawn on the other teacher, “Oh! I didn’t know that was what you meant but how come, you are having the same challenge as me?!”

Why is it that some of the most senior of pastors, the best of drummers, pianist, fashion designers etc would rather prefer their younger pastors, apprentice or students do the work instead of them? ‘Cause of that wisdom they have that they admire and want to learn but some can’t swallow their pride to want to know. Some would just keep watching you over and over again till they tap from your wisdom while some won’t even bother learning, they will only keep pushing you to do it forgetting that fact that age is an issue of mind over matter.

That you can be as old as Metuselah and still be as dumb as the jelly-fish, that you can be the youngest and still be the wisest in the pack. No one completely knows all, just not possible. So, dare not brag to me about your age.

Maybe you don’t know what wisdom is, maybe you don’t know that wisdom means being wise, maybe you don’t know that being wise means acquiring knowledge and experience, developing common sense and pure insight or maybe you actually don’t know that it is not all about acquiring and developing but using the former and applying it to the latter- Real life situations, but yet still, your age, my age doesn’t really count.

Tell me, from a person that returns to sand still holding on to everything at age eighty to a person that dies at age forty, having released every gift, every wisdom, having made a lasting impact in the world, the world not remaining the same again and vice versa, who has lived life to the fullest?

What do you gain from claiming “seniority”? Many are quick to pointing out their age differences when a problems comes up, or sometimes when it comes to decision making not realizing that life sometimes doesn't require the same formula to solve the same problem, that no one is perfect and that the wisest or the oldest can get it awfully wrong sometimes.

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That you can be seventeen and be in the same 100 level with a person of 22, that you can be 25 and still be battling to get a certificate in whatever institution of learning and a 20 year old is out there making millions independently because of what he has to offer, though sometimes it is a matter of luck but I am so sure that the amount a 25-year-old Neymar will be collecting in just a week will be way more than what a man of, say 40 years with all kinds of educational degrees will be collecting in a month, no offense! Not saying that you should go and kill yourself because you won't be earning "more than a million" in a week, on the contrary, just an instance. But you have to realize that you have to defeat age because whether we like it or not, you will only live once and you have got to make the most of it but how do you get to live this out?

There is the fountain of youth and it springs out through your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and the lives of people you love. Once you are able to tap into this source, then you will truly have defeated age.

Get over the age syndrome already! It is a freaking disease that has an unpleasant symptom, a terrible feeling that results in a melancholic outcome. It is a myopic symbol that doesn’t give you the grace to learn from your mistakes and improve on it. As good as it is, it can be a destructive feeling of ego when you allow it into your head.

Pastor Adeboye, Bishop Oyedepo might be great preachers that can make your life change for the better but I can tell you that they can still be touched by and get solid, life-strengthening point from the messages of fellow younger preachers so long as they don’t feel too big to be preached to. Like I mentioned before, age has to do with mind over matter, for as long as you don’t mind, for as long as they don’t mind, IT DOESN’T MATTER.

I hope you know that a Lecturer, even greater, a Professor like Osinbajo, a Guru like Wole Soyinka can get something from those aspiring to be like them and they will be like... “How come I have not heard this thing before?”

Some are lucky enough to improve with age but just like Be Bennett once said, "Those who improve with age embrace the power of personal growth and personal achievement and begin to replace youth with wisdom, innocence with understanding and lack of purpose with self-actualization", but not everyone can be the same

It is simple, you have to know that wisdom...Comes not with age but with education and learning, however don't get me wrong. As much as grades don't define your intellect and rumours don't define who you are, age doesn’t define your maturity but who says that age is totally irrelevant, HELL NO!

The older you go, the more you get to understand life for in youth we learn, in age we understand.

 When it comes to age, the fact is, it varies with people but wisdom is what never diminishes with age however, don't ever believe that you are too old to dream new things because growing old is not the issue but thinking old is the problem and one more thing...

Just like the quote goes, "never regret growing older because it is a privilege that was denied many."

Live your life and forget about your age