Respect does not come with age. Let’s get that straight.
You can be decades older than me, but if your words drip with arrogance, if your actions reek of hypocrisy, if your treatment of others is laced with cruelty—don’t expect me to call that respectable.

I was taught to value people, yes, but I was not taught to worship them. Age might give you experience, but it does not give you immunity from being wrong. And when you are wrong, I will not stand here, silent, pretending you are right just to protect your pride. That is not respect—that is enabling.

Don’t tell me, “I’m older, so I’m right.” No. Being older means you’ve had more time to learn, but if all those years taught you nothing about humility, kindness, or fairness, then your age is nothing but a number you’ve wasted. As Job 32:9 says, “It is not the old who are wise, nor the aged who understand what is right.”

Respect is not something you demand—it’s something you earn. You earn it by treating people right, by leading with example, by showing that your authority is matched with responsibility. You lose it when you belittle, when you manipulate, when you think respect means unquestioning obedience.

If you want me to respect you, live in a way that deserves it. Give respect to get respect. Speak truth, even when it’s uncomfortable. Own your mistakes instead of hiding behind your years. Treat people as equals instead of looking down from a pedestal built on nothing but the illusion of superiority.

I will not bow to pride disguised as wisdom. I will not flatter arrogance just because tradition says, “Honor your elders.” Yes, I honor—but I will not enable. Yes, I respect—but only if you’ve earned it. Respect is mutual, or it’s nothing at all.

So remember: you and I are standing on the same ground. The same soil will cover us when our lives are over. And when that day comes, it won’t matter how many years you’ve lived—it will matter how you lived them.