Two news articles recently presented pictures form school projects with children dressing up as “centenarians.” Their old lady costumes were bathrobes and big fuzzy slippers with pink foam hair curlers, or they wore sloppy house dresses with wire-rimmed spectacles.
Old man costumes were plaid flannel shirts or ill-matched clothing, with the child pretending to slump over a cane.
Cute? Yes, but their idea of what people look like when they are “old” is very different from mine!
The older men I know shave daily and dress with style. My older women friends are fashionably dressed and don’t leave the house without lipstick, jewelry, and matching purse and shoes.
I’m sure there are aging adults who don’t care how they look and never have.
But, isn’t it the young adults who are often seen out in their pajama pants and slippers at the stores these days?
My friends over 80 years are sporting today’s trendy clothing styles, using smartphones, and Ubering around town!
These same adults use computers and tablets and check their email daily. Some are on Facebook, and some happen to be my best blog subscribers, as well!
Just sayin’… The majority of seniors I know are Aging Gracefully, and they look darn GOOD!
Questions:
Do you think it’s cute or rather insulting when children dress up as “old people” in such a manner?
Did you live in an era when people were taught to dress up better than today’s youth are taught?
I would say no to the first question. Most importantly, why are the children being told that “older” folks dress like that?
Yes to the second question, matter of upbringing!
Hi Laura, I thought the same thing… I wondered if these children thought up the costumes themselves. More likely, it was their parents who helped them dress up, so does that generation have the wrong perception?
If we had more intergenerational interactions between the youth and seniors, perhaps the children would have more imaginative costumes.
Great point, Melba! Thank you!