Most People Don’t Think About Aging Until It’s Too Late

Christina Peoples, Founder of Gero-what?!®

Over the past 7 ½ years, one question always comes up: “How did Gero-What?!® start?” Usually, I give the short version: I saw a lack of representation in the field of aging, a need to amplify Black voices, and a gap in how people were being prepared for both the common realities and the surprises that come with growing older. However, I've got time today and I want to share the longer version. Not just so you can understand why I am so passionate about this work, but so you can be encouraged to think about your own aging experience too.

The Gift of Rejection

Gero-What?!® was birthed out of rejection. Yes, rejection. The the very thing that often feels like a dead end turned out to be the beginning of everything for me. After applying for job after job and getting one “we’ve chosen another candidate” email after another, I hit a point where I asked myself: “What’s a girl gotta do to get her foot in the door in this field?” The answer? Build your own door, girl. I credit God for that.

When every door seemed to be locked, I laid my own foundation. Brick by brick, I built a space that carried my personality, my culture, and my passion for helping people think differently about aging. That space became Gero-what?!®.

Why Aging Matters

Here's what I've learned along the way: most people don't think about aging until something forces them to. It usually comes up when a parent gets sick,

a birthday that suddenly feels heavier than the others, or missed societal "milestones." Those moment create urgency, sometimes even pressure, but too often the outlook on aging is negative. Aging becomes something we react to in crisis, instead of something we prepare for with intention.

Society has led us to believe that aging is something to fear, deny, or push off until on down the road. This leaves us unprepared for the realities and unable to celebrate the growth that can come with life. Let me just say, I know that feeling. Rejection once made me question my own path, but it also pushed me to build something different. Aging desrves that same reframe.

Throwback to 2018: the first days of Gero-What?!®. Proof that rejection really can be redirection.

Here's why aging matters: it's not something waiting for us in the distance, it's an experience we are living. Every choice you make, every relationship you nurture, every way you take care of yourself, every boundary you set, all of it is part of your aging experience. When we avoid thinking about aging, we set ourselves up for the okie doke. We miss the chance to build lives that reflect our values and prepare us for what's ahead. However, when we embrace it, we make space for all the opportunities, lessons, informed decisions and the kind of growth that helps us thrive.

Aging isn't waiting for us in the distance, it's an experience we are living.

What Gero-what?!® Stands For

Gero-What?!® (aka G-Dub..I just made that up) is more than a platform, it's a brand, and a commitment. A commitment to:

• Talk about aging in a real and relatable way.

• Amplify Black voices and cultural perspectives that are too often missing in the conversation.

• Help people prepare for the realities of aging without shame.

• Celebrate the joy, growth, and lessons that come with the aging process.

I'ma stand on this hill proudly: aging is not the enemy, ageism is (watch my video on ageism here).

Your Aging Experience

You deserve the right to paint your aging experience how you want. Be encouraged to live this experience as something happening in real time, not later on in life. Start thinking about the you you're growing into because this process is about the story you're creating in this very moment.

The question I'll leave for you is this: what kind of aging story do you want to create for yourself?

Watch this video to learn more about my story.

Be Blessed,

Christina