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Golden Years

Gen Xer shares some timeless advice for Gen Z.

Meghan Smith is the owner of Melody Note Vintage store in the eternally hip town of Palm Springs, California, and her old-school Gen X advice has really connected with younger people on TikTok.

In a video posted in December 2022, she shares the advice she wishes that “somebody told me in my twenties” and it has received more than 13 million views. Smith says that she gave the same advice to her partner's two daughters when they reached their twenties.

The video is hashtagged #GenX advice for #GenZ and late #millennials. Sorry older millennials, you’re too old to receive these pearls of wisdom.

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Identity

13 side-by-side portraits of people over 100 with their younger selves

These powerful before-and-after photos reveal just how beautiful aging can be.

This article originally appeared on 12.08.17.


Centenarians — people 100 years or older — are a rarity. Their lives are often scrutinized as holding the key to aging.

Czech photographer Jan Langer's portrait series "Faces of Century" shows them in a different light: as human beings aged by years of experience, but at their deepest level, unchanged by the passing of time.

In the series, Langer juxtaposes his portraits with another portrait of the subject from decades earlier. He recreates the original pose and lighting as closely as he can — he wants us to see them not just as they are now, but how they have and haven't changed over time. That is the key to the series.

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Identity

What's wrong with aging? Here are 17 pleasures people only started to enjoy as they got older.

Don’t let the youngsters fool you. There’s nothing wrong with a quiet night in and a good night's sleep.

A lady happily spends time with herself.

American culture has always been obsessed with youth and vitality. It feels like after you reach the age of 35 you become invisible. That’s why we fret over gray hair and wrinkles and spend nearly $17 billion a year on cosmetic surgery.

The funny thing is that studies show people get happier as they age.

So why are we obsessing over being young when we should just relax and enjoy the self-acceptance and wisdom that comes with aging?

As people age, they also start to enjoy things that they previously didn’t like or hadn’t experienced. Older people are better at slowing down, being present and appreciating the world around them instead of looking to see what’s coming around the corner. They develop an instinctual knowledge that joy comes from being in the moment.

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This article originally appeared on 09.08.16


92-year-old Norma had a strange and heartbreaking routine.

Every night around 5:30 p.m., she stood up and told the staff at her Ohio nursing home that she needed to leave. When they asked why, she said she needed to go home to take care of her mother. Her mom, of course, had long since passed away.

Behavior like Norma's is quite common for older folks suffering from Alzheimer's or other forms of dementia. Walter, another man in the same assisted living facility, demanded breakfast from the staff every night around 7:30.

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