Generativity

My description of myself reads that I'm in that era which Erik Erikson called, Generativity versus Stagnation. Generativity means to what do I give myself. If there is nothing to which I give myself, I'm a good candidate for stagnation. We've been cleaning the basement and our closets. There are some wonderful items we've rediscovered; however, they are useless except for the memory or stories which they hold. That's a good description of stagnation--holding a great story but not of much use now. I'm grateful that in the era of my life, which many call the elder-years, I'm able to give myself to clergy. My ministry is as a Therapist, Adjunct Seminary Professor and Member Care minister with missionaries. I spend my time with ministers who pastor a church or who are on a staff; missionaries; students in a Seminary and folks who are ministering with their involvement with some of the social issues of our time. I know that these folks have much to give me in terms of their energy, new ideas, challenging values, etc. They are crucial in my on-going maturity. Generativity is a reciprocal arrangement or it isn't true generativity.