What’s your earliest memory?
I grew up in the Jim Crow south [of the US] at a time when spectacular manifestations of racist violence were the major interruptions of our daily routines. When I was still quite young, my parents moved to a neighbourhood that was repeatedly attacked by the Ku Klux Klan. The earliest event I can remember was a bombing across the street from our new home. Black people were allowed to move in on the side of the street where we lived, but they were not allowed to purchase property or live on the other side of the street that divided the white zone from the black zone. On several occasions, committed white allies purchased homes in the forbidden zone as surrogates for black people who were determined to resist the racist zoning laws. One Saturday night when I was close to three years old, I was washing out my white shoelaces that I would need for Sunday School the next day. Suddenly the entire house shook violently. It would have felt like the end of the world, but there was no such conception in my young consciousness. I remember being more frightened than I had ever been, and ran screaming to my mother. To this day, whenever I hear loud, explosive noises, I am brought back to that moment.
What does ageing mean to you?
As I grow older, I try my best to hold on to the courage, enthusiasm and willingness to venture into new territory that is most often characteristic of young people. But at the same time I try to draw appropriate lessons from the experiences I have accumulated. For example, I really do understand now the importance of physical, mental and spiritual self-care. As an older person, I find that a great proportion of the new knowledge I encounter comes from young people. Intergenerational contact is good for us all.
