The Woman I Revere

Good Morning,

Thank you for visiting my blog. As you can see from pictures of me, I am not a young woman as far as the number of years I’ve lived. Because I spent so many years in classrooms teaching high school and college-age people, I consider myself to be young in many of my philosophies. My work with teens kept me young. Thank you, former students.

When I was growing up, we were taught to respect and defer to older people. I still call my teachers Mr. or Mrs. and their last name. Most of my students treat me with the same respect, even though I’ve told them they may call me by my first name.

Where am I going with this? Recently, when I have gone to conferences, I’ve heard some agents and younger writers make comments that seem to indicate they think older people should get out of the way. They think because we are older we cannot relate to young people. 

Nothing could be farther from the truth. The longer we live, the more we learn about human nature. People are people. We love, hate, hurt, and get hurt. We feel isolated at times. We want to belong. We make mistakes. We have wants and needs. We don’t take ourselves too seriously. We can laugh at ourselves. 

Classics are classics because they appeal to human nature, wants, needs, and feelings. Those don’t change.

As a young person, I enjoyed the company of older people. I think it was because I could relate to my grandparents. My parents were busy making a living. Thank God. When I wanted to talk, my grandparents had time to listen.

In later life, I learned older friends understood and related to me. I loved that they weren’t judgmental. As a matter of fact, some of them were fun to be around. They provided advice when I wanted it; just listened if I wanted someone to bounce ideas off.

Why am I going to keep writing young adult fiction? How dare I assume the voice of a teen? Because I understand what it’s like to be a teen. I want teenagers to know they are not alone with their feelings. We all have issues, fears, and similar emotions. I had great rapport with a majority of my students. Many of them are my Facebook friends. They attend my book-signing events.

For those who don’t think young adults can relate to older women, go online and search for Ruth Bader Ginsberg, or should I say “The Notorious Ruth Bader Ginsberg?” Ruth Bader Ginsberg, the woman I revere, is an online sensation,  and she’s eighty-five years old. 

Young people admire Ruth Bader Ginsberg because she deserves respect. This Supreme Court Justice fascinates me. She is a millennial icon known for her progressive position on many issues and blistering dissents to rulings that she disagrees with. She isn’t afraid to disagree. Young men and women wear shirts bearing her picture and name. I plan to buy one and wear it. I’m praying she lives to outlive those who would replace her if they could.

Thank you for reading my blogs. Today’s stream-of-consciousness blog is my response to those who want to discriminate against older writers.