Tapestry
with Mary Hynes

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Our society is fascinated with all things youthful. But when the very young rule, the very old are pushed out of the spotlight. And that, scholars are beginning to realize, is a waste of incredible proportions. If you have been on this earth for 80, 90 years - decades filled with love and loss - work and marriage - pain and joy - maybe you've picked up a thing or two.

Karl Pillemer is a gerontologist and a professor of human development at Cornell University. For five years, he and his colleagues interviewed more than a thousand people over the age of 65, asking them what they had learned about how to live a good life. Their research is available at The Legacy Project, and in a book called 30 Lessons for Living.  Karl Pillemer is Mary Hynes's guest on this week's edition of "Tapestry."

And if you would like to add your own ideas and experiences to the discussion, please go to our Facebook page, and fill in our "Lessons for Living" questionnaire.