De Senectute

"Old age: the crown of life, our play's last act." — Marcus Tillius Cicero

Recently there have been letters and articles in the local newspapers about RiverWoods and particularly about a proposed expansion. One quote from a neighbor, I believe, was something like, "We don't want old people moving in, we want young people." Another article talks about the demographics of an increase in the elderly in the Seacoast area.

Maybe someone should try to elaborate who and what we are.

Who are we?

We are mothers and fathers, grandmothers and grandfathers, great-grandparents, too. We are married couples or single, widows and widowers. We are people who come mostly from New England, but many others come from all over the United States and as far away as Tasmania. We have all worked for a living, like you. Many of us moved here to be nearer to family members.

What did we do?

We were homemakers and professionals, engineers and teachers, doctors and lawyers, librarians and booksellers, salesmen and saleswomen, farmers and gardeners, businessmen and businesswomen, veterans of foreign wars who fought in Germany and the South Pacific, teachers and professors, mountaineers and artists. We have had all kinds of careers. We have raised families. Most of us are retired, but some of us work part time and a few full time.

What do we do now?

We live in a community where we make new friends and share old stories. We do woodworking. We paint and quilt and make pottery. We play bocce and golf. We garden seriously. We row in sculls or paddle kayaks. We walk a lot and exercise as much as we can. We ride bicycles. We attend lectures and we give lectures. We read books and have written them. We are happy to share our life stories and exploits. We care about and for our aging friends. We are here because we want to be interdependent and less burdensome to our families.

Do we add to the community?RiverWoods is a big taxpayer, yet, we do not occupy spaces in schools. We need and use health and emergency services, but we pay for them through our insurances. We have contributed in major ways to the New Outlook Teen Center and Seacoast Hospice by hosting fund-raising events. We do volunteer work through outreach programs. We use our skills to create fine furniture and works of art in paint and fabric and clay for auctions for nonprofit organizations. We improve walking trails like the historic Jolly Rand; and we help clear fallen trees from the Exeter River. We remove invasive plants. We enjoy knowing the staff who work here. We become their friends.

Our officers and the voluntary board of trustees feel that there is enough enthusiasm and interest to pursue further building on this last section of this property that RiverWoods owns. If more people come here it is because they find how glad we are to be here. Judging from the surroundings at the Woods and the Ridge sections of RiverWoods, it seems clear that we have respected our ecology.

For better or worse, populations are aging everywhere. People are living longer for multiple reasons, some related to new health care options. Places like RiverWoods (and there are more and more choices being offered in life care communities) are becoming more and more attractive to us elderly who want to be as independent as possible. While we live here we also try to be connected to the Exeter community.

And, finally, regarding "old people," I am reminded of an engraving on an old New England tombstone, namely: SUM QUOD ERIS (I am what you will be ).

Thomas W. Adams is a retired doctor who lives at RiverWoods and runs the pottery studio at the retirement community.