Topic > Interview with an Elder: A Reflection

I have been given the opportunity to interview a 68 year old man who will be referred to as "Wallace" to maintain confidentiality and protect his identity. The goal of this interview was to gain knowledge and examine “successful aging” through the lived experiences of an older person. The interview with Wallace took place at a bar in Morgan Hill, California, and I think it was a great experience for both of us. Wallace was honored that I was interested in his life experiences and was very eager to help me with this assignment. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Wallace was born and raised in McKeesport, Pennsylvania. He is a Caucasian man in his sixties. He is the only boy and the second born. He has two sisters, one of whom was adopted. He moved to California when he was 20 with his family and has lived here ever since. He spent half his time here in California living in San Diego and now resides in Morgan Hill. When asked what his best quality was, Wallace responded with his ability to forgive others. Learning to forgive others is what he liked most about himself. He said that when he was younger, he often held grudges against others for long periods of time, which led to more pain down the road. He developed a relationship with God and learned that forgiveness was something he needed to live a fulfilled life. One of the things that stuck with me was when he said, “forgiveness frees us from the past and allows us to live in the present.” Wallace said his worst quality is that he talks too much, to the point that sometimes he doesn't even listen to what others are saying because he's already thinking about what to say next. When I asked Wallace what remained the same about him throughout his life, he said his sense of humor remained constant. His fear of death definitely changed as he got older. As he grew up, he began to be less afraid of death. This is partly because he developed a deeper relationship with God as he got older and because he became increasingly content with the life he lived. When asked about an influential person in his life, he started to cry. He talked about his wife and how she had passed away from breast cancer. He said losing his wife was one of the biggest turning points in his life. She was a huge inspiration to Wallace and he said she always inspired him to do better. Even when he was undergoing chemotherapy, she was an inspiration to him because of her strength to smile despite the pain. He talked a lot about his family. He had five children and 13 grandchildren. He emphasized how important family was to him. He valued being with his family and his appreciation for them only grew as he got older. The stress he put on missed opportunities with his family showed me the importance of not taking them for granted. Looking back on his life, Wallace felt the only thing he could have done differently was travel more. He wishes he could explore the world a little more and experience more cultures around the world. I asked Wallace what the best and worst thing is about getting older. The worst thing he said about aging was the aches and pains throughout his body. The best thing about getting older is being able to see his grandchildren grow up and do the things he never got to do. He mentioned that another good thing about getting older is the senior discount, which I thought was funny. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a, 74(2), 229-236.