Word: Venerable

venerable

\ VEN-er-uh-buhl \  , adjective;

1. commanding respect because of great age or impressive dignity; worthy of veneration or reverence, as because of high office or noble character: a venerable member of Congress

2. a title for someone proclaimed by the Roman Catholic Church to have attained the first degree of sanctity or of an Anglican archdeacon.

3. (of places, buildings, etc.) hallowed by religious, historic, or other lofty associations: the venerable halls of the abbey.

4. impressive or interesting because of age, antique appearance, etc.: a venerable oak tree.

5. extremely old or obsolete; ancient: a venerable automobile.

noun:

1. a venerable person.

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The venerable old clock tower rose majestically into the sky, casting a long shadow in the late afternoon sun.  Ivy and moss clung to the old stone at the bottom of the building.  The wrought iron hands, still active even after so many long centuries of use, moved slowly as time passed. 

               “So, kids, what do you think?”  Henry asked his two sons.

               “Meh.”  Said Jake, the older boy.

               “It’s a building.”  Said Leon, the younger.  Both boys looked at the tower for a moment before turning their attention back to their phones.

               “It’s not just a building.  It’s a clock tower that’s stood since this city was founded over two hundred years ago.  Think of all it’s seen in that time.”

               “Buildings don’t see stuff, dad.  They’re buildings.”  Said Leon without looking up. 

               Henry sighed.  His kids were completely missing the point of the vacation.  He had intended them to experience things from the past without seeing them on a screen.  Get a sense of what used to be.  They were having none of it.

               “But think of all the history that this building has been through.  All the people who’ve walked through it.  Tended it.  Made it work even to this day.”  He tried.

               “History sucks.”  Jake said. 

               “What?  How can you say that?”

               “Because it does.  It’s a boring class.”  The boy said without any enthusiasm.  Henry wanted to forcefully remove the phones from his kids hands, but that would probably make them even less cooperative than they already were.

               “This isn’t a class, Jake.  We’re here, right now.  Seeing where all kinds of cool things happened with our own eyes.”  Henry said, trying to make it sound interesting.  Jake slowly looked up, blinked, and then looked back down at the screen.

               “Meh.”  He said again.

               “That’s all you can say?  Meh?  Just think of it all.  Let’s see, where’s that guide book?”  Henry dug through his backpack, trying to find the tourist’s guide to find out something about the tower that would interest the boys.  “Ah, here it is.”  He said once he found it.  “Let’s see what it says.”  He looked through the book until he found the entry on the clock tower and started reading.  He tried to make it sound interesting, but when he saw his sons weren’t paying any attention, he stopped.

               “Look boys, I’m trying to show you something that really happened.  Why don’t you put those phones away and at least pretend you’re interested?”

               “Cause this sucks.”  Jake said.

               “Yeah, old stuff is lame.”  Leon followed up.  “New stuff is better.”

               “How can you say that?”  Henry asked.  He was horrified at the attitude his children were displaying.  “Just because it’s old, doesn’t make it any worse.  In fact, a lot of it is actually better than what’s made now.”

               “Yeah, right dad.”  Leon said.  “What’s so great about this old stuff?  It doesn’t even do anything cool.”

               “Well, this tower tells time very reliably, for one thing.”

               “So does my phone.”

               “Your phone won’t work in a few years.  This tower will keep on working for decades.  Maybe even centuries.  Old things like this tower here were really made to last.  Those toys you’re holding were not.”

               “Cause something better’ll come out next year.  Then these phones will be lame too.”  Leon said, quite sure of his words.  Jake nodded in agreement.  Henry held his head in his hands.  He wasn’t getting through to them like this.  He could try and argue until the sun went down, and it would do nothing but waste all of their time.  He needed to do something though.  Maybe something else would spark their interest. 

               He looked through the guide book again for something interesting.  The clock tower had a long and distinguished history, but that wasn’t enough.  They needed something else.  Something involving a war or a battle or some such would probably work.  As he looked through the book, he found just that.  A museum dedicated to a battle that happened nearby during the Civil War.  That would probably work.  And it even had an entry on the clock tower, which seemed to have played a part in said battle. 

               “Alright boys, you don’t care about this clock tower, but how about seeing some things from a real life battle?”  He said.  Leon looked up from the phone and Jake’s eyes slid away from the screen, even if his head didn’t.  He had gotten their interest at last.

               “What kind of stuff?”  Leon asked.

               “I don’t know yet.  Probably lots of guns and cannons and such.  Oh, wait it’s all old weapons.  You two probably won’ be interested.  I guess I’ll just go and take you back to the hotel.  You two can play on the computer while I go look at all the old stuff.”

               “Well, maybe we could go.  I mean, just this once.”  Jake said as he finally put his phone away.  “Just to see how it stacks up to games and stuff.”

               “Yeah, I mean, it’ll probably be really dumb, but I guess it can’t hurt.”

               “All right, if you two really want to go, then let’s go.”

               Henry turned and headed back to the car with his kids following behind.  He smiled to himself as he walked.  He had finally won.  It was a small victory, to be sure, but it was a victory none the less.  He might even be able to get them at least a little interested in the past.  At the very least, he could start to change their opinions about older things.  It was a long shot, but it would be worth it if it worked.  Henry just hoped they wouldn’t make too much of a fuss when they found out where they were really going.  

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Newer is not necessarily superior, and older is not necessarily inferior.  Of course the opposite also holds true, in that older isn't always better, and newer isn't always worse.  But looking around these days, you see lots of people believing that newer is either better or worse, depending on the age group.  I guess it's just a result of the times people are brought up in.