It's been observed often during the past few years that children are maturing younger.

But it's equally true that people are staying young longer. The timing of the arrival of old age has, on average, been steadily shunted backwards.

Partly it's been as a result of better health care and greater awareness of diet and exercise. But along with improved bodily fitness has come a transformation in attitudes.

In the last four decades of the century just gone, we have lived in a world in which the emphasis has been on youth. When young means fun, there is every incentive to delay the start of your dotage.

That's particularly true of the middle-aged generation, the people now in their fifties who can never forget the years of their teens and early twenties and can't really bring themselves to leave them behind.

These are the "forever young" people who, whether they like it or not, will be the older generation of tomorrow, drawing their pensions within a decade or so of the start of the new Millennium and wondering then what to do with the rest of their lives.

One of the things to which they might apply themselves is fighting a rearguard action against those politicians, pundits and pension-fund managers who are already claiming that there are too many old people in the world for the State to be able to cope with their needs.

There's going to be a battle royal to retain a decent pension provision, to maintain adequate health care, and to ensure that there's enough support in the form of community care or good-quality residential and nursing homes to enable everyone to have a dignified old age. Will these now middle-aged people find time, in between fighting their corner, to do all the good, socially-useful things that today's older generation involve themselves in?

It's largely people in their sixties, seventies, eighties and even nineties who sit on the committees of loads of community groups and charities, plan the fund-raising events, go visiting "old people" who are often younger than themselves, and generally keep the wheels of civilised society turning.

Yet almost every one of these groups is facing the same crisis: a shortage of new blood. Those now in middle age, who should be involving themselves ready to take over, are often too tied up in the demands of their own lives to find time for others. We are being put to shame by people who might be a whole generation older than we are.

Maybe a good resolution to have made as the clock ticked over the midnight hour on Friday would have been to stop being so self-centred and inward-looking and force ourselves to take on a social obligation or two on top of the responsibilities of work, home and family.

Not easy, I know, for those of us who belong to the "me" generation. But if we can't bring ourselves to do it, the world of the elderly which we inherit is going to be a bleaker place.

Meanwhile, here's a New Year plea from the charity Contact the Elderly which I've been asked to pass on to you. They tell me they need volunteers to help to put something back into the lives of elderly people who might be leading rather isolated existences.

How the system works is that on one Sunday afternoon a month, volunteer drivers each collect an older person from his or her home and take them to afternoon tea at the home of another volunteer who is acting as host.

That way several older people can rely on getting together with others who they get to know quite well over time, and have a regular outing to look forward to. It's a bit like a monthly party for people who otherwise spend quite a lot of their time alone.

Sounds a good scheme not requiring too much in the way of commitment. If you want to know more about how it works in this area, please ring Freephone 0800 726543.

I Don't Believe It!

Well, this is a fine start to the new year - getting taken to task for trying to be helpful to a Queensbury reader who was upset about people parking outside her house.

John B Hogg, writing from Greengates, has this to say: "I must consider you very remiss, Hector, in your answer to poor Mrs Harrison regarding her illegal parking problem. You state in your reply that the road in question is unadopted. If this is correct then it is more than probable that Mrs Harrison owns a section of the road to its centre line.

"Being a private road, the police have no powers of enforcement. However, people who park on private land are trespassing and therefore are subject to the law of trespass. Possibly enlisting the services of a clamping firm might cure the problem.

"Pavement parkers are one of my pet hates. I absolutely abhor them. Not only are they wilfully breaking the law, and don't care, but are totally oblivious to the hardship they cause to wheelchair-users and the blind. Motorists these days must think that yellow lines and pavements are installed for the adornment of the road edge and nothing else.

"No, Mrs Harrison, look at your deeds to see if you do own a section of your road and fight back."

That's certainly a spirited attitude, Mr Hogg. But not everyone wants to get involved in a legal battle with their neighbours, or start clamping their cars.

That was why I suggested that Mrs Harrison had a word with her local councillors to see if they could persuade her neighbours to be a bit more thoughtful.

However, I take your point about cars parked on pavements. They are a nuisance. Trouble is, I can't see what can be done about it given that just about everyone living in narrow streets built in pre-car days now has a car. Where else are they supposed to leave them?

Maybe people living in streets like that shouldn't be allowed to have cars. Now there's a suggestion the Council could take up if it wants to start the Millennium on a really unpopular note....

If you have a gripe about anything, drop a line to me, Hector Mildew, c/o Newsroom, T&A, Hall Ings, Bradford BD1 1JR, email me or leave any messages for me with Mike Priestley on (44) 0 1274 729511. If you've already sent in a grumble and it hasn't appeared yet, don't worry - it will do.

Yours Expectantly,

Hector Mildew

Enjoy Mike Priestley's Yorkshire Walks

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.