Can a guy who has been a Franciscan student, bank vice president, seminary graduate, associate pastor, hearing aid specialist and regional sales manager really have a lot of fuel left in his tank to propel his senior years?
“Fill ‘er up!” might well be the answer when that question is posed to 63-year-old Daniel Baggott of Albany.
“This can be the richest time of life,” Baggott contends. “It’s a chance to experience more of who God made me to be and pass it on to another generation. It has to do with drawing close to God and identifying with the season of life that I am currently in. Being a senior and aging is not a sentence; it’s an opportunity. I know God has made me an encourager and dreamer, and that’s what I have to offer… to dream dreams that our bigger than ourselves.”
As a hearing instrument specialist, Baggott sees many seniors in the exam room. He deeply respects them and encourages them through some of the challenges of aging.
“Every senior has a story,” he says. “They shouldn’t be treated as children, and we can learn from them if we take the time to listen. I think it’s why our practice is so successful.”
But, he doesn’t stop at learning from the aged. He also learns from aging.
“Aging has taught me to focus on what’s really important and not on things that come at me that are really a distraction,” he said.
Baggott’s priorities are rigidly kept in line by the bountiful energy of his grandchildren and virtually every aspect of family life. He and his wife, Lee, pour themselves into the next generation at home, work and church.
Baggott is careful, however, to maintain the “bigger picture” of life that was a critical part of his personality throughout his younger years.
“I have to battle to keep that bigger picture at this time in my life because so many things can close in on it,” he reasons. “My dream is to have an impact so that there’s a difference after I’m gone.”
With all the wisdom that comes from church and marketplace leadership, Baggott encourages seniors to specifically discover God’s purpose for this season in their lives and fully give themselves to it because they have so much to offer.
In other words, “Fill ‘er up!”
Robert J. LaCosta is an author, songwriter and blogger whose MobileGod app is available on IPhones and androids. His inspirational website is sonrisen.com To suggest seniors for this column, call LaCosta at 435-1250.