A Purdue professor of family studies has found that, as the elderly get on in years, they enjoy their relationships with their offspring more than ever — and the feeling is mutual. Karen Fingerman, whose previous work showed a correlation between physical activity by the elderly and improved interactions with their adult children, completed her latest study last fall. It was published in the journal Advances in Life Course Research. “Both parents and children reported significantly less ambivalence than we originally expected,” Fingerman told Purdue News Service. “Generally, there was a feeling on both sides that this was as good as the relationship had been.” Many of the parents expressed appreciation for the help their children offered and the reliability of the relationship. As for their progeny? “While we expected that children might feel demanded upon or stressed by their parents’ health declines,” says Fingerman, “most of the participants focused on positive changes, such as trying harder to spend time together or talking more or feeling closer and appreciated.” All of which should serve to remind that God placed neither conditions nor a time limit on the Fourth Commandment, “Honor your father and your mother.”

Illustration by Kevin Bedan