The first role of generativity not only doesn't go away; it provides many of us with an opportunity to "do it better" as we grow older.

Typically, there are two major questions that face any person or couple when they have begun to raise children or begin a mutual project.

Having outlined the roles to be engaged in this play about generativity, it is time to further set the stage by introducing the men and women to whom we turn for insights and narratives about generativity and deep caring.

William Bergquist and Gary Quehl We are ready to “set the stage” for our in-depth analysis of each deep caring role. We begin this analysis by turning to the word “stage” itself–a word that has several different meanings when the nature of deep caring is being addressed. We use this concept in two different, though related, ways. The first is …

When we are stagnant rather than generative we continue to do the same old thing. We settle for mediocrity, allowing our dreams and personal aspirations to wither away. We come to resent and even block the ideas and achievements of younger people.

There are many choices available to each of us during a lifetime. These choices can lead us to a self-renewing life or to stagnation and decline.

  Gary Quehl and William Bergquist [For the complete report on this project see The Sages Among Us: Harnessing the Power of Civic Engagement, available as a link through the LPC Bookstore.] In the four essays provided in this eighth issue of Sage we continue the exploration (that we began in Issue Three, Four, Five, Six and Seven) of the …

What about the senior sage leaders? With more years and a greater diversity of experience, do they see even greater change in their leadership patterns and styles than the emerging sage leaders?

The phenomenon of on-going personal changes especially applies to leadership. Behaviors and practices once considered core to our leadership shift or fall away when we no longer find them effective or desirable.

Given their long experience in leading, senior sages are readily able to identify the qualities they most and least admire in other leaders.