When I saw the title of your piece I thought you were talking about old people, not us;) Seriously though, many of us are still involved with taking care of our parents, those late 80 and 90 year olds, and talking to them really does require a different skill set. I cringe to hear young medical professionals interview my dad (97). “How long have you lived here, what did you do for a living, are you allergic to any medications, have you had any surgeries”… and on and on and on. I try to place myself strategically out of his peripheral vision so I can flag them down; no, he can’t answer many if not most of these questions, which you could probably infer from his chart. Of course many of them plunge on in oblivious dedication to mission.

Lots of land mines to dodge when talking to Silent and Greatest Generation members, the coarse language that has taken over our speech, the waning of organized religion, how to make small talk without saying “remember” or asking seemingly softball personal questions. Of course the hurt feelings from having your failing memory put on public display are often forgotten as well…