You know, the whole concept of feeling old is completely a social construct. People have told us all our lives what makes them feel old and then when we see that pattern in our lives, we think – o, me too! What is time that defines what we feel? And why is it that feeling old or feeling young has positive or negative effects on us? Time is what it is; it never changed and it certainly didn’t come into being the first time you suddenly felt it.
This weekend I went back to Cornell as an alumnus for the first time. I felt young again because for a weekend I got to do all the fun foolish things I once did on a weekly basis, yet I felt old because I was introduced to some freshman (born in 90s…I can’t relate to that!) who never knew me as a student – they only see me as a grad and career person (which SO does not define me, might I add).
Then maybe related or not, a student emailed me today to ask for a phone interview for research they are doing at the Hotel School. I don’t know when I became qualified to be one with insight on this, but it seems that I am. I feel old, I fully admit, but I also wish that I didn’t because I don’t believe in letting social constructs like that have an effect. I graduated and here I am today working at priceline.com and some kid wants to know about my job and workplace life. This will be interesting… Hopefully I don’t scare him
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