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Being Seen: Do I Still Register in Another Person’s Mind
The nourishment of being noticed: recognition as the mother’s milk of senior living
Perhaps one of the fundamental needs of later life, or life in general, is simply to be noticed.
Not admired. Not praised. Not even particularly liked.
Are You Missed?
Just noticed.
Someone asks where you’ve been. Someone says, “We missed you at breakfast.” Someone remembers that you used to teach. Someone asks how the writing is going. Someone notices you haven’t been at exercise class for several days.
These are small things. Almost embarrassingly small. Yet I suspect they are a form of psychological nourishment.
I think we all want to feel that our presence is known and registered.
Earlier in life, being noticed happens almost automatically. You are a husband or wife, a parent, a teacher, an employee, a neighbor, a coach, a customer, a friend. You occupy roles that continually announce your existence. People need things from you. They expect you to show up.
Retirement changes this.
Showing Up or Not
At Aging Acres, nobody really needs me to be anywhere. If I don’t show up for breakfast…
