Avó commandeered the room with her presence, internal power and position within the community.
She wasn’t an overly “successful woman” by populist terms but she was wise and life deep with experience.
To me she was the most successful person I ever met.
You see she raised over a 1000 children, shepherded hundreds of elderly people into the later years of their life and built new community economies to fight poverty.
In 1994, I found myself jettisoned into a world that was so unfamiliar, challenging and life altering to me as a young man. It’s not entirely surprising to see its echoes still reach through time today. The Orphanage Of Mamae Clory ( O Lar Da Mamae Clory), established a vital haven and family for those most in need of it and was a ladder away from poverty and trauma.
Avó, is Portuguese for “Grandmother”, and she was the leader of a community of over 200 children when I first came to Brasil. There was so much power and potential in her in her 7th plus decade of life and with that was a community wide heartfelt respect. From the corridors of power in São Paulo to the favelas ( shanty towns) around the corner, there was a collective feeling of deep admiration for her abilities, qualities, and achievements.
There was Respect.
I often amazed at her power engine and force to get the work done. She would reply to my Aussie ignorant questions with a Yoda like quality “ My son, it is the work which gives me greatest pleasure as it is also of a great purpose. How can I stand by and let this suffering persist without taking action?” ( Sadly, hand gestures don’t translate very well)
Purpose and Meaning
I am well aware of the role of meaningful occupations and roles have, especially as we enter into the era of the Memory Economy.
And so I read this article today by Orb Media, which highlights the importance of
Perception of self as you age and
Respect and its association with health and well-being.
It’s been well documented before in other papers “individuals with a positive attitude towards old age are likely to live longer and in better health than those with a negative attitude” the article further states “those with a negative view of aging are more likely to suffer a heart attack, a stroke or die several years sooner.”
But, what the team at Orb Media explored further is the relationship of ageing and respect.
And this is what they found.
Older people in countries with low levels of respect for the elderly are at risk for worse mental and physical health and higher levels of poverty.
You can read more of this article over at Linked In where I published this article in full. You can read it here.
David
P.S. David it’s Brazil not Brasil, what the? Sorry, old habits die hard.
P.P.S. On a mission to reduce avoidable memory loss in adult Australians. It’s clear, purpose, meaning and respect are one lever to be pulling on to make this a reality. I’d love for you to join me. How are you applying this in your life? Do you need help, feel free to schedule a free 10 minute consultation?
