Greta Silver Its age that rocks
[Music]
i did something magical when i was young
without knowing how it would change my
life
but my subconscious knew better and took
note picture is summer day it was
grandma’s birthday
i was 17 with a ponytail and petticoat
i was standing between my cabins on the
lawn behind grandma’s lilac
and lee secretly whispered is my sick
she looks so fit why did she invite to
her final birthday at 76
that’s nonsense was my eldest cousin’s
answer no one knows when he’s going to
die but i felt so sorry for grandma
how terrible to think this was her last
birthday
i stood bold upright and made the
decision i’m not going to be
like grandma today i decide i’m going to
live until i’m 120
and if i have to go at 100 that’s also
okay too
grandma celebrated 10 times her last
birthday
it wasn’t until i was over 50 that i was
asked
why aren’t you afraid of being old
i realized i was too young for such
thoughts
i’m going to be 120 years old
i had eternal life that fact i really
couldn’t recommend it
i tell you something i’m 72 and i know
it
it’s so great being old old age is like
being young but better
but even if we rely on normal
statistical figures
the age between 60 and 90 is just as
long as between 30 and 60.
we get the same life package again but
this time without stress
no sleepless nights because one of our
children is sick or we are worried about
our
jobs our finances or whatever else may
tormented us back
this is a time to make our dreams come
true we didn’t have time for at a young
age
we have an incredible life experience we
like everyone
have gone through defeats and crisis yes
we have suffered
but we have learned from them it’s like
a footballer
when does he go off the pitch victorious
and say wow i cracked it
it’s not when the opponent’s
respectfully moved out of his way and
the goalkeeper says here’s your goal
no it’s when he’s worked hard for it
when he’s earned it
that’s like we have done it in our life
too
we had to fight our way through that has
made us strong
this yeah it’s like a trampoline
it gives us wings it’s our normal
basic emotional income
that no one can can take away
the images of age in our heads are more
likely to hinder us and to help us
when i volunteer to mentor music
students and prepare them for what to
expect when they
give concerts in my retirement home i
shock them
by saying that is the generation that
invented your mobile phone
it is a generation that worked hard for
the german economic miracle
and by the way it’s also the generation
that flew to the moon
we are also unaware of this even the old
people aren’t aware of this
we snap the book shut when we need a
rota
there’s no point of starting anything
new hounds our thoughts
the stair lift goes directly into the
coffin in our head
but it’s like a ferrari that goes from a
to b and the standard goes from top to
bottom and nothing else
we always needed herpes we didn’t moan
at a young age oh how terrible
now i can’t wash the laundry by hand
anymore now i need a washing machine
even a young man at a 30 ever hardly
compares himself to the
20 year old boy he used to be
he gained a lot of experience he could
be proud of
if we want to live the second phase of
life with the same intensity
like we lived and loved at 30
when then age is a startup company then
we throw ourselves into it again
and don’t just mark time
before it was duty now it’s freestyle
can rocks more than have to
i was 30 when i had explosive thoughts
i asked myself the question who is
responsible for my happiness
and what do i need for my happiness i
absolutely needed children
for a fulfilling life but they didn’t
turn up for three years
did i really want to put the
responsibility
for my happiness on the tender shoulders
of my children
i’ve made a fascinating discovery
i had made secret contracts behind the
backs of people who didn’t know anything
about it
i’ve made them responsible for my
happiness and blamed them for my
misfortune
according to the principle if my boss
were nicer and my partner more loving
then i would be happy
but they didn’t get it no one stood
there in the morning
asked what shall i put into your diary
today what do you need for your
happiness today
next week next month no
i had to do it myself
i probably got this from childhood
when my parents had time for me and my
sisters let me play along then i was
happy
and if they didn’t i thought they were
stupid and i was sad
but you can’t transfer this into adult
life
we alone are responsible for our
happiness and that is
pure freedom
no longer being dependent on situations
or
people gives us wings
it turned out that the others had closed
such deals with me behind my back
i had to be responsible for their
happiness that is the first thing i had
to change
as a small harmless example my husband
came home in the evening with a terrible
headache and i asked that you have
enough to drink today
i didn’t get around to it i had so much
on my plate today
so who do you think went into the
kitchen and fetched the water
when i said at one point darling i think
you are old enough now
to take the responsibility for your
headache and hydration he said
you can’t be serious
the language between the secret agents
aims to give the
other a bad conscience you can’t let me
down now or
among colleagues if you don’t have time
now then we can
then we can just forget the whole
project
and then we let ourselves be beaten
again and get angry with ourselves for
not saying no
i must admit i wasn’t any better at that
time either
when i asked my husband if he wanted to
go
on a bike ride with me and he answered
he would rather watch formula one
i sat down next to him and moaned but it
would have been good for you
you’ve been sitting in the office all
week
according to the principal if you want
to watch tv that’s fine but only with a
bit conscious
what is that about
is his way of having a good time
and filling up his happiness tank that’s
perfectly fine
i can go on a bike ride myself and
nowadays i feel blessed going to the
opera alone and no one’s
sitting next to me struggling to stay
awake
now the thought that being responsible
for your own happiness has something to
do with selfishness may have made a
brief appearance
i also belong to such type of person who
is familiar with sentences like
don’t think so highly about yourself
don’t make yourself the center of
attention
but it’s far removed from being selfish
we alone have the responsibility for our
happiness
only if we are doing well we can be
there for others
if we just imagine completely exhausted
parents of young children or elderly
people caring for their partner
we know very well how little energy is
left for loving care
but when our happiness tank is full we
can set the world on fire
then life can flow again so in my
opinion
not caring for ourselves is failure to
render assistance
it’s like in the plane only when we put
on
ourselves the oxygen mask then we can be
there for others
first i had to learn what has
what personal responsibility has to do
with sustainability
i have the incredible privilege of
having a film about me
on the united nation platform called
sustainability
how other countries deal with age my
first bestseller
invited me to the talk shows and got me
this request
i immediately understood the second line
how other countries deal with age
but what had to do with sustainability
okay the federal ministry of education
and research
hits the nail on the head by saying
sustainability means living today
in such a way that i can live well also
in the future
just like the people around me and the
future generations
what does it mean when we look at the
resource of life
it’s limited we know that
how is but what is my responsibility
okay nutrition sport exercise
at a young age as well as at my age
that keeps my body going but how about
my emotion
from the point of view of sustainability
continuous whining is an environmental
burden
it doesn’t just get me down but also my
environment
and also my children are we always aware
of this
of course we sometimes have to mourn but
using this as a dating platform to find
kindred spirits it’s dangerous
when i moan about my boss or my
colleagues i immediately find a lies and
sympathy
but on this platform are only why enough
that put each other down
so why am i doing this
do i want more tender loving care more
helpfulness recognition the price is
high
we all want to stay together with
positive inspiring people
so this could lead to loneliness
how i will live in the future is also
determined by my thinking
yes our head is a pivotal point from
where we can test the course
let’s have a closer look brain research
can prove something we have known
already for a long time
no matter what you think you are going
to be right henry ford said
nowadays research says
your brain will do everything it can to
make you right
what a dangerous thing if we don’t use
it correctly
if you’re saying age is
terrible then your brain will show you
everything
to support you everything that fits your
perception
and your actions are guided by your
thoughts and hey you are right
but the small change in the direction of
your thoughts
will direct you to a positive future if
you are
looking forward to an exciting future if
you are curious about all the beautiful
things that want to be created
then your brain will support you
it will show you everything
that fits your perceptions that
will change your actions and thus your
life positively let you make bolder
decisions and much more
brain research knows that our brain
works like a google search engine
it pre-sorts when i’m only on the net to
closely follow disasters
or listen to music
then the search term of christmas will
find me
burning houses due to burning christmas
trees whereas
someone else can listen to beautiful
christmas music
but my life my life gave me another
chance to understand
how important my thoughts are i was 27
when my husband and i decided now it was
time for a baby
but they didn’t get up for three years
when my husband and i asked ourselves
if we could love an adopted child as
much as our own
we answered yes with all our hearts
and now i don’t need to tell you the
rest
the next month i was pregnant of course
i was happy about the pregnancy
but i also got a major shock
did i really change processes in my body
with my thoughts
it was clear to me i had to become the
boss in my head
i called the headline hanging above my
desk salt’s discipline
we don’t have to think what it what’s in
our minds
that brings likeness to life that makes
us free
how did light lightness come into my
life i just went through it now
high school graduation and that was it
17 years of being a housewife with a
mother of three children with a husband
dog and house and making jam
that was a time when i learned
i had to find happiness in the small
everyday things
otherwise i would have gone crazy at the
age of 48 i set up my
my own furnishing business
from houseboats holiday homes all the
way up to a four-star hotel
and that was a time when i learned
ignorance as an
advantage due to the size of my
project i was able to design furniture
myself and furniture manufacturer
wanted to make it but they thought it
wasn’t possible
and it wasn’t until step by step we
looked at where they would have to
compromise
and it turned out it was possible after
all they had limits in their heads
which i didn’t have
ignorance creates possibilities
and that made it even easier for me to
take on project i had no idea about and
i still do that today
i worked as a freelance journalist i had
my own
pr agency and later on i developed
unusual congresses
with 6e i became a model and with 66
when
others retire i went online and set up
my own youtube channel where i tell the
world how great it is to be old
and what we can do ourselves to create
more likeness in life
just look at the last two years two
speaker magazine
bestsellers brought me the invitation
for the talk shows
and the united nations made a film about
me as i told you already
i became a podcaster i stood as speaker
on stages i wrote columns
and yes i opened up the economic market
for the best seller
for the best ages sorry which were
previously only been full of
rubber stockings and magnesium
thanks to my magical decision when i was
young
i’m now in the hay day of my life at the
age of 72.
when i was 30 40 50 no one could have
guessed
what talents wanted to come to life and
i
throw this ball to you now there is so
much that needs to be left
the world needs people like you expect
the best of life
you are entitled to it live your fullest
version
like you order your car with all the
extras
you