I see much to my commend in my present age. There is a palpable sense of wisdom, which sounds so trite. Youth can remember trivia details but I see a larger picture baed on exprience and across several fields. I understand complexity more than when I was young.
My twenties were when I adjusted to American middle class culture after the Witnesses. I wanted in the middle class and away from the Witnesses so much that I made things harder for myself. Walking away peacefully was not my experience. Walking away meant abandoning family members that I loved. I did not abandon them. The reverse happened.
My mom called the 70s and the 80s rusty rather than golden years. My body failed me massively when still young. I brace myself for my body's failing me again.
Culture functions best when ages are integrated. Together, combining our skills and outlook, we can be formidable. Apart, we are merely mediocre.
Despite some tragic circumstances, I do have more confidence than in my youth. I now have an accumulation of things I could never survive but did. My outlook might be gloomy but I acknowledge I might be filtering the results.
I am a Beatles, Stones, WHO, Clapton nut. Watching these groups perform in their 70s ignites strange feelings in them. When they first hit the US market, I gave them a 6 month lifespan. They still rock superbly. Many sound better than when younger. The defiant ones of my youth are now old men.