Over Christmas break, I have been spending a lot of time with people of all ages, including both family and friends. I love how the holidays bring together people from all walks of life. There is mutual value in spending time with people who are younger, older or around the same age as you. I enjoy being with people from all of these groups, since these experiences add variety and richness to so many areas of my life.

Babies are fascinating mini-humans that love to tease us with sneak peeks of their future personalities. They are easy to keep track of (until they start crawling/walking etc.) but are very high maintenance. They are cute but so. much. crying. And drool. However, their clothes are adorable and facial expressions are priceless.

One of my favorite age ranges for kids comes right after the baby stage, when they move into the one to three age group. I love how these kids see themselves as adults (especially after they learn the power of the word “NO!”). They are really cute mini humans with tiny limbs and soft hair. Their little voices are adorable and they love to sing and tell you stories about every detail of their day, even if they still sound like an alien. They think they understand everything but of course they don’t, which is always entertaining. In the bigger kid stage (age 4-8), kids get super creative with their games, codes and lingo. They become even more opinionated and most love corny jokes, which I truly appreciate. In general, kids have endless energy for play and imagination. Spending time with kids of all ages takes us back to the time when the most stressful part of our day was choosing a coloring page. I am inspired by kids to do things that give me energy and take opportunities to be creative.

Teens and young adults are in the long process of becoming contributing members of society, which can be quite soul-sucking if you don’t pay attention. While this can be challenging stage of life, the teen and young adult years are always filled with adventures. The best part about spending time with this age group is their boldness, tenacity and willingness to try new things. If something looks fun and interesting, these people won’t back down from a challenge. While millennials are often labeled as lazy, entitled and selfish, this is often not the case. Young people of this generation are discovering themselves in an age when it is almost impossible to work and pay your way through college. All the information in the world is available at the touch of a button in the palm of their hand. Young people today are not lazy, they are bridging a gap between the society of the past and the society of the future. They are still trying to find their place in the world, just like the rest of us.

I have always had a very special place in my heart for older adults (60+), possibly because I share many of their characteristics already. I love doing counted cross stich, making greeting cards and doing anything crafty. I am a morning person who had most of my daily tasks completed by noon and my ideal bedtime fairly early. My perfect night includes a weeknight episode of Jeopardy! followed by American Pickers or Antiques Roadshow, then it’s off to bed with a good book. I am blessed to live very close to all four of my grandparents whom I love very much. They are wonderful people who have worked hard all of their lives farming, building planes, selling cars and raising families. The positive impact they have on the lives they touch continues to inspire me in my daily life.

What I enjoy most about spending time with older people are their stories. The rich life histories and detailed stories of these people are something that I treasure. Older people have held family and friends close for many years and they recognize that culture, trends and fads will change, but people, places and memories that matter to them will not. The slower pace of older people is a welcome change from the frantic motion of our modern society. Ask an older person what life was like back in their day and I promise you won’t be disappointed.