Why should the older members of society immerse themselves in the issues of the day? If for no reason other than that, they are the only ones who are free to tell the truth and have little or nothing to lose. Older people are not useless in society unless they choose to be. Older people, Joan Chittister, have surrendered the position of seer and sage in a society rife with billionaires, technicians, and bureaucrats, and many of us have abandoned the world we built and made. It just seems overwhelming.

Now is a good time to evaluate what we have done and lost and spare no effort to make it known. I’m fascinated by the number of people who tell me to be silent and let myself be pushed to the edges. My mission in life is simple. Spiritualist Thich Nhat Hanh writes that the definition of hell is simple: it’s a place where there is no understanding and no compassion. “If there is compassion,” he wrote, “then hell ceases to be hell.” I’m on the case.