The Eldering Ceremony

Celebrating An Elder's Coming of Age

WHAT IF…?

Instead of retiring from service, we began Eldering™ to be of service.

Instead of losing touch with people, we took on consciously creating Eldering relationships with younger leaders of the community.

Instead of leaving the world’s problems to the next generation, we were responsible for our collective future and designed it with them.

Declare a larger purpose for the rest of your life

Many of us approach ‘old age’ with fear. We’re afraid of all the things we expect to lose (like our health, our status and our purpose). We’re uncertain about what lies ahead and we have no idea what we’ll do with all our time. Now is the end of our adulthood, a time when we are primarily valued for what we produce. Life stretches out before us like a blank canvas, and we can fill it with whatever we choose.

It is a time for us to let go of our past and to begin creating our lives as a possibility. It is a chance to generate a new definition of what is possible as we grow older. It is an opportunity for us to begin Eldering, to share the wisdom we have to contribute to younger generations, and to act on our commitment to the continued existence of the whole community. In doing so, we can be valued for who we are.

The Eldering Ceremony marks this rite of passage. It is an opening for thoughtful adults to:

• Be recognized for who they are
• Declare what they stand for
• State publicly what they can be counted on to contribute to younger generations, their community and the world for the remainder of their lives
• Assume their role as an Elder

The Ceremony can be held as a separate formal occasion or as part of another gathering (such as a retirement party, family get-together or group meeting). The power of this event lies in having family, friends and community members present to witness the declarations and to acknowledge who the new Elder is for them.

The Eldering Ceremony Guide

Our Eldering Ceremony Guide includes:

• Instructions for organizing and conducting the event,
• Recommended declarations,
• Cue sheets for the participants and
• Suggestions on how to customize the ceremony.

With your purchase of the Guide, you receive a lifetime license to use and modify the ceremony to suit your community's needs.

Order online

“Following unconventional wisdom is the key to a successful life.”
—Jim Selman

“Vision is having an acute sense of the possible. It is seeing what others don’t see. And when those with similar vision are drawn together, something extraordinary occurs.”
—Shearson Lehman