In today’s world, something important is slowly being lost: respect for experience. Many young people now believe they are wise enough to make decisions on their own without listening to elders. Age is often mistaken for irrelevance, and advice from older people is brushed aside as outdated or unnecessary. This mindset is dangerous, not because young people lack intelligence, but because wisdom is being confused with confidence.
Older people are not wise simply because they are old. They are wise because they have lived. They have faced hard choices, suffered losses, made mistakes, and found ways to rise again. Their bodies may show signs of wear, but those signs are proof of endurance, not weakness. Every wrinkle, every slow step, and every quiet pause carries lessons earned through years of experience.
The younger generation often believes that access to information equals wisdom. With the internet, books, and social media, answers seem instant. But knowing facts is not the same as understanding life. Experience teaches consequences. Elders speak from memory, not imagination. When they advise caution, patience, or restraint, it is usually because they have seen what happens when these things are ignored.
Sadly, many young adults today speak to elders with little respect. They interrupt, argue, or completely dismiss their counsel. In families and communities, this attitude has created distance and tension. Yet, when things fall apart, when relationships fail, careers collapse, or mistakes become too heavy to carry, it is often the same elders who are sought for guidance. This shows that deep down, their value is still known, even if it is not always acknowledged.
Another troubling issue is excessive focus on material things. Many young people are more concerned about money, status, and personal comfort than about values, community, or responsibility. As long as they are doing well, they care little about what happens to others. Elders often think differently. They understand that life is not only about what you gain, but about what you contribute and leave behind. They have seen how selfishness destroys communities and how unity sustains them.
This does not mean elders are always right or that young people should blindly obey. Growth requires questioning, and progress needs fresh ideas. But progress without guidance often leads to repeated mistakes. When experience and youthful energy work together, society benefits. When they are separated by pride, everyone loses.
Change must begin with humility. Young people must learn that listening does not make them weak; it makes them wiser. Elders, too, should guide with patience and understanding, not control. Respect should flow both ways.
Age is not a burden to society. It is a resource. When experience is ignored, mistakes multiply. When it is valued, lives improve. The future will be safer and stronger when the young learn to listen and the old are willing to teach.