Are We All Sages in Training?

On a warm summer day, six-year-old Ethan sat picking black currants with his great grandmother, whom he called “Oma.” Upon collecting enough berries to fill a large cooking pot we proceed inside to clean and prepare the berries to make jam. The sweet aroma filled the kitchen while Oma taught me German. This is one of my most fond childhood memories.

I grew up having a close relationship with my maternal great-grandmother who lived with my family. I watched as she grew reliant on the support of our family and eventually, the healthcare professionals who came to the home. After she passed away from cancer when I was eleven, I began volunteering at a long-term care home in my community. Having experienced the value and fulfillment of intergenerational relationships firsthand, I started a high school capstone project to foster intergenerational conversations about societies’ most complex challenges. Mentored by Dr. Peter Whitehouse I attended many virtual dialogues, hosted an intergenerational climate gathering at my high school, and led multiple regenerative planting events, which included my beloved currants.

In the summer of 2023, I presented with Dr. Peter at a Sage-ing®International, MultiGen Visionary Circle; I was immediately greeted with such positivity and support that I began attending future MultiGen meetings. What I love about MultiGen is the genuine compassion and care shown for each other alongside the emphasis of reciprocal mentoring. Throughout meetings on topics from mortality to community and current affairs, everyone welcomes diverse perspectives providing grace and spaciousness for all to be comfortable. In the Summer of 2024, I became co-lead of the MultiGen Team

Over the past year, having become more acquainted with Sage-ing International, I have begun to think about what it means to be a Sage. To me a Sage is a person who uses their unique life experience and wisdom alongside empathetic listening to foster shared understanding, bridging societal gaps, in the hope of leaving the world better than they discovered it. To deeply listen a Sage must suspend their own assumptions and beliefs within open dialogue to truly acknowledge where another person is coming from. A Sages goal is to be a thoughtful ancestor for future generations. Yet is being a Sage limited by chronological age or are we all Sages in training? I believe it is the latter.

Today, although being able to communicate digitally around the globe in seconds, people both young and old are increasingly isolated and lonely. Society, becoming ever more individualistic, has lost many of the communities that brought us meaningfully together. Sage-ing International offers a community in which we walk together through the challenges of the human condition and the turbulent times we live in. I believe central to SI’s community, and its impact is the further integration of intergenerativity and diversity.