Future at age 93

In New York, I listened to a 93 year old guy who was still incredibly spry and intense. He did a quick little history lesson of the stock markets, interest rates, and inflation and how the sub-prime mortage issue is the same yet different from other crises the U.S. has faced. He discussed the situation in the U.S. in light of the Japanese issue from a few years ago. At the end of the brief history lesson he said, "well that is the past; we need to focus on the future and where we go from here." It dawned on me that this guy recognizes that he is just part of an ongoing conversation; an ongoing story. Most older people I know can't get out of the past because they realize their past is the majority of their entire life; their future is such a small part of their entire life that they brush past it with the greatest of ease. However, in the light of society; of humanity; of generations... the future is significant. How can we all be like this gentlman and work to solve the problems of the future even though they may not impact us directly? How can we get tear down the walls of generations that limit our decision making to how it impacts only us and realize that "generations will reap what I sow" (credit Sara Groves)?

The other part I love about old people is that they can get away with saying stuff others never could (at least in the $2,000 suit crowd I was hangin' with). Someone asked him a question about how the sub-prime mortgage crisis could impact regulations and the overall tightening of the regulatory environment. He got heated. He said, "We have the regulations we need to prevent this. We just didn't have the regulators with the balls to do anything about it!" There was stunned laughter. It was great. I don't know if I totally agree, but it was a great comment.