What are the hidden benefits to being old?

In most media it has been that being old is lame and once you reach that stage, you can no longer do what did in your youth anymore. With that said however I heard about that they have some hidden benefits to becoming old that most media that most people don't tell you about. What are some of those benefits?

That you have the long-view of events and issues. You were “there” when ideas emerged, and heard the conversations and watched the controversies evolve. You saw the players on both sides do both lovely and ugly things, so you avoid the “theme park version” of events.

The flip side is nobody will ever really benefit from your observations, because people don’t actually learn from the past. We all think we do, but we don’t.

I’m not being cynical. It’s just the long-view experience.

Closer to death.

When you're around 25 you essentially reach your physical peak and your body starts to slowly die, because it won't regenerate anymore the way it did through your childhood and adolescence. You can't mix foodstuffs indiscriminately anymore, or drink alcohol and party the entire weekend with minimal repercussions anymore. You also need to take it easier and sleep more, because all-nighters will ruin your health. But the upside with this is that you can enjoy things more when you have to limit them. Now that I'm nearly 40 I find that I enjoy good liquor more for its quality rather than large quantities of booze, while I also prefer to eat better food than before. I value my time also more and am unwilling to waste it on pointless things. I find life more enjoyable now that I'm slowly growing old.

The older you get, the more knowledge and experience you gain. Unfortunately, you also lose the ability to implement some of it.

With age also comes a gradual need to let go of experiences you used to enjoy, such as eating certain foods and participating in certain activities. It’s a good idea to experience and savor those things most likely to be affected by old age so you can give such things up later with minimal regrets.

What I find is that the older I get, the less I care what other people think about me. I was never obsessed with popularity to begin with, but before I got married and started a family, I found it impossible to entirely ignore the opinions other people had of me, if only because of the consequences people can impose on you. If nothing else, you constantly have to avoid making a negative impression, lest you miss out on a job opportunity, a possible source of social support, or a new relationship.

Nowadays, I find myself thinking that as long as my wife isn't about to leave me (she isn't), my kids to stop depending on me (they aren't) or my boss to fire me (he wouldn't dare), then I really don't need to care what anyone else thinks at all.

Plus, I seem really well buffered against the effects of interpersonal drama. I've been there (I don't care what "there" someone is in, I've been it), I got over it, and I just don't have the energy any longer to get excited by someone else panicking over something that now seems trivial to me (what?? Your bestie is calling you a slut behind your back?? Maybe?? yawn).

These are good things. This attitude allows me to focus, at long last, on what's really important in my life, and to enjoy the positive stuff that has happened to me, like having a family or finding a profession I really enjoy.

Getting old has it's compensations.