TODAY’S SILVER FOXES
In my 60s, I am a Silver Fox. We come in both genders, as more and more ladies assume their age without frivolity or surgeries. We are healthier and more versatile than the previous generation of Silver Foxes, adjusting to endless change intelligently. Despite the challenges we overcome and our achievements in every sphere, we seem to disappear into the background once our white hairs surface, and we are hardly mentioned or consulted.
If like me, you are opposed to Ageism, then we need to define our space and project our voices to be heard and inform others that we are still full of zest and defiance in confronting more challenges. We still have the dynamism to work and even fall in love once more. This way, we debunk the old and archaic preconceived ideas that white hair is age “dust”.
Some friends tell me I look young because I’m now single. I reject the idea, informing them that bachelors are more prone to growing old because no one looks after them and they have no one to look after and motivate them. It’s a double challenge. Besides, we are more concerned about remaining alone in the future. Rather, they have nothing to complain about, settled and secure in their ways.
Young people ask me how I feel at my age. I tell them the truth: perfect and full of energy, still making future plans, totally oblivious to my age. That my confidence is spiced with experience and wisdom, knowing that for any decision I take, I feel responsible to see it through to the end. My chances of failure are minimal because life has exposed me to so much, I make sure that I always make allowance for risks of all sorts.
However, there is only one setback. We see through people much more lucidly than before and listen far more attentively than ever. This provides zero tolerance when we make decisions regarding people. I can speak for myself. For example, I always had confidence in my intuitive first-encounter impressions. That is due to the fact that I am observant and I attach a lot of importance to human behavior. More than ever before, I now mentally profile a person from the first interaction and determine the course of our relationship forward, whether it is worthwhile or not. I overlook all the elaborate talk, obliging behavior, and any other dramatic displays.
The most beautiful aspect of being a Silver Fox is having invested wisely into our natural well-being despite all the blows and surprises life brings our way, without submitting to them. We find the result in energy and healthy habits at our age. Having lived a dynamic and enterprising life, we constantly learn and seek new challenges ever more confidently. In addition, having overcome all life’s responsibilities and difficulties rewards us with super confidence and optimism — always accommodating the unforeseen.
I believe that we should wear our white hair as crowns. As a testimony to all that we have endured, and lived. We are life’s commandos and we are survivors. We have so much to offer to all those who solicit our intervention.
To my understanding, nothing is more ludicrous than an elderly person, still dying their hair as we watch it fade progressively, or wearing a toupee that is cosmetically blended into sparse hairs, or the falsely-implanted teeth that either get in the way of an intelligent discussion, or they’re so glaring white, one needs to look away intentionally. I say, take the pain of a hair implant/transplant, or a tooth implant to brighten up your face, but do not go over the opposite polar edge. After all, beauty and youth are in the substance and radiate from the interior. Keeping one’s mind on the positive track sustains a youthful spirit and all other physical traits become secondary. Better be mesmerizing than impersonating a celebrity-that-never-was.
Sammy RNAJ — sammy.rnaj.writer@gmail.com — WhatsApp +96170499352
