Fellow Alonee's (elder orphans), question

[thinkalot]

Originally Posted by Giesela

he primary gist of my post was never married no kids is the emotional element not who is going to take care of me.
While the percentage of lifetime singles may be rising it is pretty rare for the say 55 and older set/ True spinsters not these 28 year old kids who blog about spinsterhood.

It may be rare where you live but not everywhere.

I live in a 55+ community and there is no shortage of elder orphans.

[Giesela]

Originally Posted by thinkalot

It may be rare where you live but not everywhere.

I live in a 55+ community and there is no shortage of elder orphans.

Really? Not just widowed living alone with the children living across the country?

[thinkalot]

Originally Posted by Giesela

Really? Not just widowed living alone with the children living across the country?

There are many of those but many elder orphans too. With more younger people moving in the numbers will go up. My 3 newest neighbors are elder orphans.

[Fox Terrier]

Originally Posted by Lodestar

I, too had a small, but very close and inclusive, group of friends in my middle age but by a fluke of fate they died early deaths. Others moved eventually. I'm gradually accepting the fact that I may not be able to recreate that good time of my life again.

This paragraph reminded me of a song...so melancholy but so true. He was around 22 years old when he wrote this. How could such a young person get it so right?

"Bob Dylan's Dream"


While riding on a train goin' west
I feel asleep for to take my rest
I dreamed a dream that make me sad
Concerning myself and the first few friends I had.

With half-damp eyes I stared to the room
Where my friends and I spent many an afternoon
Where we together weathered many a storm
Laughin' and singing 'till the early hours of the morn'.

By the old wooden stove where our hats was hung
Our words were told, our songs were songs
Where we longed for nothin' and were satisfied
Joking and talking about the world outside.

With haunted hearts through the heat and cold
We never thought we could ever get very old
We thought we could sit forever in fun
Our chances really was a million to one.

As easy it was to tell black from white
It was all that easy to tell wrong from right
And our choices they were few and the thought never hit
That the one road we traveled would ever shatter and split.

How many a year has passed and gone
Many a gamble has been lost and won
And many a road taken by many a first friend
And each one I've never seen again.

I wish, I wish, I wish in vain
That we could sit simply in that room again
Ten thousand dollars at the drop of a hat
I'd give it all gladly if our lives could be like that.