John LeeGERON 100 – Visiting the Elderly #2J. L. is a Hmong-American woman living here in Clovis, California; she is a respected woman in her family. Upon arrival I asked her to tell me about her life from when she was a child to the present day. Therefore, the topic of discussion was about his childhood, growing up and his current life. Currently, JL is 91 years old, making her part of the older population, according to Hooyman and Kiyak (2011, p. 19). She came to the United States as an immigrant following the Vietnam War. His birthplace is somewhere in the mountains of China. Back then, the Hmong people did not emphasize time as we know it today; it was commonly called “the rainy season,” “the harvest season,” or something similar. Growing up, JL lived mostly in the countryside. Therefore, she did not receive any education due to the lack of teachers and schools, as well as the fact that girls were not allowed to attend school. Hooyman and Kiyak (2011), stated that “older immigrant populations are less likely to be educated” (p.60). The reasons for this stem from the fact that schools are so far from home, boys were given priority to go to school, while girls stayed at home and did their homework. JL's childhood was very different from today's childhood. He said family roles and responsibilities were very important back then. Everyone in the family had a specific role to play and had to carry out their tasks accordingly throughout the day. When she was a child, she had to stay with her grandparents and help with light housework, such as sweeping and cooking. Babysitting her little brothers was her duty when she was a teenager. Once they became adults, the tasks were then different... middle of the paper... taking medications, so that they could prevent further health problems. Currently, ML said the only problem she has is that her foot hurts intermittently. She isn't stressed or worried about anything else, and her goal is to just live in the moment and enjoy every day. From this visit, I was able to learn many things about the life and aging process of an elderly Hmong woman. ML comes from a traditional culture that has established ways of tradition and family obligations. Even though she doesn't have the education or money to maintain her position, her culture allows her to have authority based on her age and the wisdom she possesses. He is currently living the life he has always dreamed of and has been on the path to aging successfully for some time now. ML hopes to continue on this path, as he believes it is what works for his aging process.