Aging is the last stage of human life where people begin to show signs of growing old with puckered lips and wrinkles all over the face and body. Many physical, mental as well as psychological changes takes place during this time (Bengtson & Settersten 2016). The essay aims to discuss the strategies and activities that I will involve as well as plan for my old age. I will discuss my aging plan through a life portfolio where I will show what are the three things that I will commit myself to and what three things will be of value during my old age. I will further recommend steps for myself that will help me to achieve my goals in old age.
1
When I grow older there are three things that I will commit myself to and they are- family commitments, life-long learning and lastly leisure (Bengtson & Settersten 2016). All the above three aspects are essential for me as I know that I will not be able to take out time for the above three when I am young as I am too preoccupied with my work and other commitments. For me family relationship also means friends as they are a vital part of my life. Therefore, I would like to spend my old age surrounded by people whom I love. I will try to build strong relationship with my children, grandchildren as well as my friends. This is the time when I can support my grandchildren in his studies that will help him to excel in academics (Connidis & Barnett 2018). It will also make me happy as I will be attached to academics as I feel that being when a person is attached to academics he/she never grows old as the person keeps learning new concepts as well as activities. However, I also know that aging will come with a lot of health issues and during this critical time I will need the support as well as assistance of my family members. I believe that many sickness can be cured when love and affection is given to people and therefore family commitments will help me to overcome my aging challenges and will further build my desire to live as well as explore more (Kim, Kim & Koenig 2016).
Secondly, I will commit myself to life-long learning process that will keep me busy and updated with the changes that are taking place in the world. I will commit myself to learning new languages that will help me to converse with different people and will also involve myself in learning arts and painting (Narushima, Liu & Diestelkamp 2018). Learning new things does not require a specific age it can be started at point of time. If there is an opportunity then I will also involve and dedicate the last years of my life towards self-taught learning that will keep me updated about new technology as well as software applications (Narushima, Liu & Diestelkamp 2018). Being updated with technology will also make my conversation easy and interesting with my grandchildren and they too will be comfortable to share their feelings as well as thoughts (Narushima, Liu & Diestelkamp 2018). I will also enrol myself in online education that teaches me about new things especially painting as it is one of the things that I love to do but due to time constraints I may not be able to do it now. If I start painting then I can also arrange exhibition programs of my art work that will also give me a living in my old age so that I do have to be dependent on others (Narushima, Liu & Diestelkamp 2018).
Thirdly, I will also spend time in leisure activities by devoting my time in cultural activities, reading books and giving time to fulfil my hobbies of cycling as well as travelling. Cycling during my leisure time will not only make me happy but at the same time will keep me fit and healthy (Paggi, Jopp & Hertzog 2016). I will also find time for exercise as it will keep me fresh and will help me to fight with diseases of old age. I would also love to travel during my old age and this is the time when my learning of different language can be used (Paggi, Jopp & Hertzog 2016). Therefore, devoting my time towards leisure activities will help me to experience new things during my old age and also give me a sense of satisfaction of committing myself to things that I always wanted to do.
2.
To achieve my above goals it is essential for me to pay attention to three important aspects that will help me to sustain myself in the future. These aspects are- housing, finances and health. One of the most essential aspect during old age is the aspect of health. It is necessary for me to pay attention to my health and prepare myself for health programs that I will be engaging during my old age (Hornby, Peel & Hubbard 2017). Since old age is synonymous to health problems it is important for everyone to make plans for their old age. I will prepare a proper as well as advanced executive healthcare directive that will outline my decisions as well as preferences that will help in my old time during old age (Hornby, Peel & Hubbard 2017). If I take care of my health only then I will be able to achieve my above goals. Furthermore, it is essential for me to maintain a strict and healthy diet now so that it gives me strength and keeps me healthy during old age (Hornby, Peel & Hubbard 2017). Without good health I will not be able to achieve to my goals and will have to spend most of the time on my bed.
I also need to prepare for a permanent housing for myself as it will be my only asset during old age. If an elderly couple or old people do not own a house then they have to go through a lot of difficulty. A permanent housing will give me security and at the same time keep me safe from outside disturbance (Aalbers, 2016). Therefore, it is my responsibility at present to earn and build a secure house for myself so that I can live peacefully during my old age. Housing is always interconnected to the economy of a person. If do not have a stable income then it will be difficult for me to purchase a house for myself (Aalbers, 2016). It is essential for me that I get a skilled job that will help me to find a house for myself that will also help me to maintain my health (Ball, 2017). Owning a house in old age will also have a positive effect on my health. If I have good housing, health and economy then I will not have to depend on others for anything and my family too will not be overburdened. The above factors will also build an identity for me in my old age (Ball, 2017). Having a house as well as a stable economy will help in keeping me healthy during my old age and at the same time will also give me a sense of security. Furthermore, good housing quality as well as economy will also help in building community care programs (Ball, 2017). To achieve the above I will have to invest my money in various schemes as well as policies
3.
To achieve all the above goals it is necessary for me to plan everything from now onwards. For building a safe as well as secure old age life it is essential to prepare for that time in a quick as well as efficient manner. There are some strategies that I will recommend to myself that will help me to achieve my goals during my old age. Firstly for a stable income I will try to invest my money in shares as well as stocks and at the same time I will enrol myself in government examination as well as interviews so that in my old age I will keep getting pension that will give me a security now as well as in the future (Walelign et al., 2017). I will further enrol myself health programs that keep me healthy. Another way of keeping myself healthy is to stay away from all kinds of addictions that can harm my health during old age (Fertman & Allensworth 2016). Addiction will also affect my economy and therefore to keep my health as well as economy stable it is essential to stay away from addiction. Furthermore, for permanent housing I can apply for a housing loan at this moment that I can pay during my lifetime through my income at the same time I can also engage myself in affordable housing mandates that will assist e in purchasing a house for myself so that I do not have to wait for it until old age (Furlan & Petruccioli 2016).
Therefore, I would like to conclude by saying that the above life portfolio will help me to prepare myself for my old age. It was during this reflection that I realised that I need to pay extra attention to some of the factors that has been discussed above. All the above factors will help me to achieve my goals during old age.
References
Aalbers, M. B. (2016). The financialization of housing: A political economy approach. Routledge.
Ball, M. (2017). Housing policy and economic power: the political economy of owner occupation (Vol. 828). Routledge.
Bengtson, V. L., & Settersten Jr, R. (Eds.). (2016). Handbook of theories of aging. Springer Publishing Company.
Connidis, I. A., & Barnett, A. E. (2018). Family ties and aging. Sage publications.
Fertman, C. I., & Allensworth, D. D. (2016). Health promotion programs: from theory to practice. John Wiley & Sons.
Furlan, R., & Petruccioli, A. (2016). Affordable housing for middle income expats in Qatar: Strategies for implementing livability and built form.
Hornby-Turner, Y. C., Peel, N. M., & Hubbard, R. E. (2017). Health assets in older age: a systematic review. BMJ open, 7(5), e013226.
Kim, S. S., Kim-Godwin, Y. S., & Koenig, H. G. (2016). Family spirituality and family health among Korean-American elderly couples. Journal of religion and health, 55(2), 729-746.
Narushima, M., Liu, J., & Diestelkamp, N. (2018). Lifelong learning in active ageing discourse: Its conserving effect on wellbeing, health and vulnerability. Ageing & Society, 38(4), 651-675.
Paggi, M. E., Jopp, D., & Hertzog, C. (2016). The importance of leisure activities in the relationship between physical health and well-being in a life span sample. Gerontology, 62(4), 450-458.
Walelign, S. Z., Pouliot, M., Larsen, H. O., & Smith-Hall, C. (2017). Combining household income and asset data to identify livelihood strategies and their dynamics. The Journal of Development Studies, 53(6), 769-787.
