Respect for the wise elders?

 One evening while on a package tour to Beijing and Xian, we were resting in a lounge at a restaurant waiting to be seated for lunch. A local family was seated opposite us. My attention was drawn to a toddler running around falling from one adult's arms to another. Six adults' attention was on him encouraging him , complimenting his dexterity or lovingly chiding his mischief. From their conversation I guess they were his parents and 2 sets of grandparents. So much love is showered on one child but I wonder whether this one child can be filial to 6 adults.

From my various visits to China led by local tour guides, I noticed that many of the older guides in their forties or late thirties often spoke about their parents with deference and how their parents deserved to enjoy their retirement. I also get the impression they take quite good care of their parents. The younger guides however, those in twenties and early thirties, seldom speak much of their parents. Of course I don't have enough statistics to make any conclusion but it may explain why China has to pass a Elderly Rights Law in 2013 making it a must for adult children to visit their parents.

Respect for the elders in most culture stems partly from the belief that wisdom increases with age and experiences in life. A lot then depends on what each society defines as wisdom. If wisdom is knowledge then it is just a click away in today's digital age and the young are more deft in acquiring knowledge. If wisdom is insight from past experience then the values adopted by a society must not be constantly shifting which will render such insight irrelevant. Changing values render different priorities in life between the young and old. Thus it may be hard to convince the young that with age comes wisdom in today's world of accelerating change.

Hence it is more urgent now than ever that respect for elders be instilled as part of moral and religious education. Embracing the aging process instead of shame around aging will help honour the elderly.