GROWING OLD, LIKE ANYTHING ELSE, has its advantages and disadvantages—the disadvantages obvious, the advantages less so. But they are there.
If you are an older person, you have known yourself, and others in your life, for a good long while. Friendship is one of life’s great gifts, and to enjoy it for many decades is to develop it to its fullest. There can be a lovely and deeply affirming mutual respect, especially if you practice dharma. In time, you go beyond the various slights, hurts, and competition that any friendship includes, to a mature appreciation of your
