Growing Old Brings Wisdom, I Believe I Know Stuff. Therefore I Do.
By Jeff Jordan
As a person who graduated from college and celebrated his 59th birthday in the same year, I
have a unique perspective on knowledge acquisition. Going into the classroom in your later
years can be frightening.
I came to the decision to finish my degree in a strange way. I was separated from my second
wife. My career as an industrial sales-person was going okay. But I had an itch. I consulted with
a career counselor at our local technical school. After testing, it appeared that I had missed the
opportunity to challenge my talents in the field of communications, on-air news, acting, and
other stuff a fifty-year-old white guy wouldn't suddenly to do.
Eventually, I did the next logical thing (Sarcasm Here). I enrolled in a certification course to
become a paralegal. It was only after completing over half the course, one of the lawyers
teaching the class advised me that paralegals in my community often worked for less money
than store clerks and got less respect the school crossing guards. Good choice, Jeff!
Actually going to night classes to be instructed in legal procedure was pretty cool. It still informs
my dubious but enjoyable fiction writing. I met my future wife, Maria. I was able to get good
grades. I discovered I could even learn, and it was stimulating. It got me to start thinking about
my life and how I wanted to spend the rest of it.
I found a college liberal arts degree program for non-traditional students at the University of
Wisconsin - Green Bay, which happens to be just up the road from where I live. It required going
to classes on Saturdays. We would have to do a lot of writing and take some exams. But before
all of this could happen, I had to apply.
This forced me to get a copy of the credits I earned at the University of Minnesota. I was a
traditional student there in the early sixties. In my head, those memories were hazy. At that
time, I was working almost forty hours a week at the country club as a kitchen slave and a cost
control clerk. I remembered belonging to the Photography club and learning how to play snooker in the Student Union while killing time between classes.
I didn't remember getting particularly good grades except for the one A. I remember that
because it was the only A I had ever earned. When I got my transcript, I was pleased to find that
the picture was better than I remembered. That transcript of credits earned put me at an almost
junior year level of accomplishment.
Once enrolled and at the beginning of classes, the first thing I learned was how lucky I was to
take on this challenge at this time in my life. I was a vanity student. The pressure to perform
came from me. I wanted to finish a task abandoned in my youth. Not only that, I had the time
read and study because I was single, living alone. I didn't have to limit myself because of family
obligations, and my income was sufficient to pay for my fee's.
These advantages stood out when I compared my situation with most of my classmates. Many of my fellow students were young adults in their mid-twenties to middle-forties who were investing in their education to get a better job. They had full-time jobs and family obligations.
Some of them were being reimbursed for their tuition and books. Others struggled.
One of my classmates was unforgettable in his creative way of saving money. He somehow
managed to get every book he needed from the Wisconsin library system, saving himself
hundreds of dollars.
Then there was the distance we all traveled to get to our classes. My thirty-minute drive was not
the shortest but far shorter than the students who had to commute from cities hours away from
Green Bay
I loved acquiring new knowledge. I enjoyed the give and take of the classroom experience with
other adults, who had the life experience to share. I found the value of reading whenever I had a
few moments. I was amazed at how quickly the assignments were completed. I came upon a
reading habit I still have. I always have one book for entertainment and one book for learning.
Probably the most essential thing I acquired in this portion of my journey is a healthy respect for
critical thinking. Not every time, but more than I had done in the past, I shed my smartass know it all approach and examined something from the other guys perspective. Sometimes, I am
persuaded. Often, I merely informed. But I've never felt like I've wasted my time looking at
something from another viewpoint.
Now I'm at a place in my life that is interest, frustrating, and challenging. I'm a politically
progressive, informed, old white male. Put that into today's society, and it means nobody really
gives a damn what I think. There are several reasons this happens, not only to me but others in
my age group. We're old. The future belongs to the next generation. As hard as it is to admit it,
that's good.
My generation took its turn at bat, it's time to pull back a bit and let the younger kids play.
Regardless of what mess we created or didn't clean up, the field of battle is theirs. The Parkland
Kids and Mayor Pete's of the world are going to take charge. Thank Mother Nature they aren't
the only ones. It appears despite my generations predictions of disaster, these young people
look like they are ready for the challenge.
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