When you think of your grandparents what comes to mind? If you were privileged to have met them, perhaps you would remember the stories your grandfather told you or maybe the songs your grandmother taught you.

For me, I remember vividly the delicious delicacies my grandmother always prepared whenever we visited her. Even writing about it now, I can almost perceive the enticing aroma that would greet us whenever she worked her magic in the kitchen. Those were the good old days, when life was much simpler and old age commanded respect. Back then, gray hair was seen as a crown of wisdom, not something to hide. At the time, the elderly were held as custodians of culture, transmitters of history, embodiment of values and virtues, and dispensers of hard-earned wisdom.

Sadly, today’s reality paints a more somber picture. In many parts of the world, the dignity and relevance of the elderly are being quietly eroded. We live in an age increasingly shaped by what Pope Francis calls a “throwaway culture” Pope Francis uses the term “throwaway culture” to describe a societal mindset that discards people, values, and resources when they are perceived as no longer useful or valuable. Oftentimes, that is the kind of attitude that we put up towards the elderly. Scroll through social media and you’ll find the fear of aging everywhere: wrinkles are smoothed over with filters, gray hairs dyed away, and youth glorified to the exclusion of all else. Rather than celebrating the natural and noble journey of aging, society portrays it as something to avoid, mask, or dread.

This is precisely why the World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly, established by Pope Francis in 2021, is so important. Since 2021, this special day has always been celebrated on the fourth Sunday of July, close to the feast of Saints Joachim and Anne (the grandparents of Jesus). It brings to the fore the vital role of the elderly in our families, our Church and our society. The importance of keeping this always before our minds eyes cannot be overemphasized. As the saying goes, “a nation without its elders is like a tree without roots.” It may stand for a while but eventually, it crumbles like a pack of cards.

Sacred Scripture is filled with stories of how God is close to the elderly and how He even gives them a new vocation. One only needs to think of Abraham and Sarah, Moses, Naomi and others to see how the elderly were reverenced in Biblical times. Such celebrations as the world day for Grandparents and the Elderly remind us that though the hands of our grandparents and elderly may tremble now, those same hands once tilled the land, built homes, raised families, and carried the weight of nations on their backs so that we can be who we are now.

Today, many elderly people experience loneliness and abandonment. They are sidelined and left without support, sometimes, and sadly so, even by their own children. On a day like this, it is as though the elderly are tugging at our collective conscience with the words of the psalmist, “Do not cast me off in the time of old age; forsake me not when my strength is spent.”(Psalm 71:9). These words, filled with both vulnerability and hope, are echoed in Pope Leo XIV’s 2025 message for this year’s celebration with the theme: “Blessed are those who have not lost hope” (Sirach 14:2)

In his message, Pope Leo XIV maintains that contrary to what popular culture wants us to believe, old age is a time of grace and blessings. He writes:

“Our elderly are the first witnesses of hope not because they are strong in body, but because they have endured, prayed, persevered, and believed. Their presence is not a burden, but a gift; not a shadow of the past, but a guiding light for the future.” With these words the Holy Father called for a revolution of gratitude and care. The challenge for us all is to be part of this revolution. So, how do we respond to this call? Quite honestly, it begins with simple, consistent acts of love like: visiting the elderly, listening to their stories, praying for them, buying them a gift. Let us not wait until it is too late to say “thank you,” or to show that we care. We must give them their flowers now while they can still smell it and not place it on graves when it does no good.

To our Grandparents and the Elderly to our Grandparents, Our Babas and Mamas, we thank you. We love you. We see you. May your hope remain unshaken, and may our gratitude never go silent.