Mzee Tibs Finds the Joy of Romance In Later Life

By Jeremiah Kaniampiha 

They say love occurring in late age can awaken exhilarating feelings and experiences. This week as Mzee Tibs celebrated his 77th Birthday, the Ssabalwanyi exhibited the joy of romance in the evening of his stay on Ugandan soil.

Gerontologist Amanda Smith Barusch (2008) observed that romantic love in the later years (as opposed to early years) is “a force for change: romantic experiences define character in subtle ways; love opens doors to our potential, shapes who we become.”

Nevertheless, media depictions of love perpetuate “the myth that only the young and unwrinkled can enjoy romance” and, worse, that, “late-life romance is either comic or disgusting.”

(Barusch, 2008, p.3) Baby-boomers, that statistically elephantine cohort born post-World War II, however, have re-defined each stage of life in ways that counter the status quo. This group is unlikely to adhere to social stereotypes of romance as a youth-only experience.

In fact, older dating is a rising trend, likely related to the growing ranks of older singles in the U.S. For example, according to the data for 2012, one-third of baby-boomers were unmarried (Brown & Shinohara, 2013).

Later-life love stories are not only possible but are common. In a national sample of older adults (ages 57 to 85), Brown & Shinohara reported the following statistics: