Passing on the skill of aging.

Western society is adding to its current financial instability by creating the ideal conditions for the physical and mental impairment of fully one third of its population.

However happily we approach it, retirement becomes less and less attractive the longer it goes on. Friendships that were rooted in the work place whither while those conducted at a distance dwindle. The "quiet life" often turns into premature incarceration rather than the revitalising bonus it is purported to be.

Whilst willingly-funding charities that are searching for cures for Dementia and Alzheimer's disease, younger members of society - with out-dated notions of how retired people should behave - often place constraints on what relatives living on a pension can do, completely missing the point that futility - the symptom most likely to breed imbecility – is something we have the ability to cure for ourselves.

Sports men and women whose active careers are over aren't told it's too late to take on other challenges. While some enter completely different spheres of life, many become coaches or commentators. Who better than those with active knowledge to devise and conduct training courses for the next generation of apprenticed athletes?

All of us are apprenticed to aging. Who better than those already fully accredited and aware of the terrain to show us the ropes and map out the territory belonging to longevity.

By not taking note of experienced, reflective older people willing to share best practice, pass on vital skills and map out the most accessible route to take on the continuing journey of life, we are committing a deliberate act of self destruction. Because if we continue to sideline and box-in people after retirement, the cost of containment will bankrupt us all.

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