What to Talk About With Your Senior
Never be at a loss for words again.
Have you ever been at a loss over what to talk to your parents or grandparents about? If you ask questions such as, how are you, you are asking one sided answer questions. Elderly people love conversing with others, especially family members and often feel left out of conversations.
Here at Assisted Living Made Simple , we came up with some questions to ask that will help them join in the conversation and keep them engaged longer.
1. Did you ever play any tricks on your parents and what was the worst trick? Hopefully this will bring up some funny memories for them and tell you a little more about them. Perhaps you’ll find out you have more in common with them than you realize.
2. What was your first car and how did you pay for it? Maybe your parents or grandparents were really cool and had a Mustang convertible or some really cool car like that. Finding out how they paid for it can tell you something about how they may have struggled to raise enough money to afford a car.
3. Were you ever fired from a job? This may seem like an open-ended question, but you can try to pry if they just answer with a “no”. Try to keep the conversation going with more questions like really, not even close?
4. What is the worst thing you ever got in trouble for? Oh boy! You could be opening a whole bag of worms here!! This subject may keep them talking longer than you like, but at least they’ll be conversing; let them go with it and enjoy!
5. Did you ever face any disadvantages? You may find out they lived through the great recession, or perhaps saw many people die from polio, you never know what you may find out when asking some of these questions.
6. What did you think of me when you first saw me? This is where you can find out the truth about what they thought of you, if they tell you the truth (HAHA)! Actually, this answer may make you cry, so get out the Kleenex prior to asking this question.
7. What did you learn about life? You may find you have learned some of the same things they learned, or you may learn that they really do know what they’re talking about!
8. What five things have you discovered that are most important in life? Here’s another question that may help you learn some very interesting things about your loved one(s). You may find out they’re so much smarter than you think.
9. Did you find the happiness you were looking for? This could be another question to have the Kleenex ready; it could be a real tear-jerker of an answer.
And then the last question . . .
10. What does it take to be happy? Who really knows what it takes to be happy? An elderly person will know what happiness is more than we do because their journey has been a lot longer than ours. Remember, they have been through it all, the good, the bad, the ugly. If anyone knows what it takes to be happy, it could be your parents or grandparents.
When visiting with your elderly relatives and are at a loss of what to talk about, try using some of the above questions to start an engaging conversation. You could learn more about life than you ever expected to and also hear some funny stories and gain incredible wisdom.
