Ever since my first grandchild was born, I have been gripped by the idea of becoming an elder as opposed to becoming older. What's the difference you may ask? Well, I have discovered over the years that the differences are mighty and important.

Our culture is obsessively transfixed on youth. We have limitless ruminations about aging, wrinkles, frown lines, sags and bags. We have extreme make-overs, turn ducklings into swans and act as if changing the outside can make the inside more substantive, more beautiful. Now, please understand, I have nothing per se against Botox, nips, tucks and lifts. However, I know that getting older can be a rich and rewarding experience and becoming an elder is a role that far transcends whether I am wrinkled or dappled or bellied.

Becoming an elder is a role of responsibility that I am stepping into as my life has matured. It is other-people oriented, community-oriented, spirit-oriented and wisdom oriented.

In Native American culture, elders become the Chiefs, a position that denotes respect and acknowledgement of life; wisdom rather than the transfer of power. Chiefs are at a stage in life where they are looking outwards as they go deeper inward. They are concerned with the overall good of the tribe, of the passing on of history, of leaving a legacy, of negotiating conflict, bringing groups to a consensus that serves all interests, protecting the environment, providing wise counsel and of guiding the children in walking paths of authenticity and honor.

As the years have passed, I have needed to learn more. More about how other people view aging, how other cultures negotiate the transition into elder hood, and about what tools were available to assist me in better understanding myself in relationship to this new territory that I was entering.

Several years ago, I discovered Rabbi Zalman Schacter-Shalomi and what he calls Spiritual Sage-ing, a totally non-denominational, transformational view of aging, pulling guidance and teachings from all wisdom keepers and spiritual traditions from every part of the globe. This movement, Conscious Aging, as defined by Gay Luce author of "Longer Life, More Joy", defines elder-hood as a "time to discover inner richness for self development and spiritual growth." We grow into sages not by merely adding years to our lives, but by becoming wise, doing the inner work that leads over time to expanded consciousness and by maintaining a grip on the needs of our families, or community and our planet.

Why is this so important now?

Because for the first time in U.S. history, every baby boomer will be 40 years old or older - all 78 million of them! And, worldwide that numbers 98 million! This reality will not only profoundly reshape government policies and procedures and create new expectations and demands upon our society but, equally dramatically, create previously unimagined opportunities and pressures upon each of us as we approach and go beyond 40 years of age. Many of us could be living mentally and physically healthy lives way into our 80's, 90's and beyond