There was an old timer in the old neighborhood we used to call "Johnny Old Man." One day I asked him where he got that name and he said, "because I was born 13 years old!"

That is the best explanation I can give for my inability to relate to young people. I suppose I was born an old man, just like Johnny.

"Johnny Old Man" used to say there were advantages to being born old. He wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed, but he seemed to have an innate wisdom that comes from experience.

"Johnny Old Man" is not to be confused with "Johnny Butch." "Johnny Butch" was the gatekeeper at the Lower West Side Children's Center in Greenwich Village. His job was to watch over us kids and maintain discipline. We all had great respect for "Johnny Butch." He only had to tell you something once. He was more of a body guard than a baby sitter.

Despite a healthy sense of fear developed from my first encounter with "Johnny Butch," I actually grew to appreciate the strict discipline that he maintained. After all, no one would dare steal our ball or our sneakers when "Johnny Butch" was around. ("Fair fights" were allowed, which meant they were over as soon as there was a clear winner, and the punishment for using a weapon on someone from the neighborhood would be unthinkably harsh).

So I learned about respect and discipline from "Johnny Butch," and I learned patience and caution from "Johnny Old Man." I feel a duty to share this knowledge with younger people. Perhaps, at the ripe old age of 45, I can save them from some of the mistakes I made in my youth. However, they refuse to listen.

We speak the same language but we just don’t communicate. They think I’m a fool, and I think they are foolish. I try to teach fiscal prudence and discipline, but my ideas are often scoffed at by young people who think it is absurd to consider retirement at age twenty five. Perhaps I’m too old for my age. Or maybe people in their twenties are too young for their age. Whatever the reason, if you kiddies are not going to listen to me I’m going to have to tell your parents. So you can follow my advice in the following paragraphs if you want to start making mature decisions about your long term future. Otherwise, I urge your parents to encourage/coerce/force you to do so.

Young people must recognize they cannot depend upon their employers or the government to provide for them when times get tough. Although you are too young to have experienced anything close to an economic downturn I can assure you that you will probably see a couple before your career is through. You may escape relatively unscathed. Or you may be one of the less fortunate who suffers economic displacement because of some unforeseen event affecting your company or industry. You must be prepared to withstand any economic hardship or challenge the future may bring. I suggest the best way to start planning for the future is by establishing a "Roth IRA." Assuming you were smart enough to graduate college and then get a job, you are probably making enough to afford about $5 per day, or $165 per month into a savings plan. You can make it very simple by having the money taken directly out of your checking account and invested into an "index fund" on a monthly basis as part of your "Roth IRA."

No age is too young to start a "Roth IRA." According to IRS, as long as a child has compensation income a "Roth IRA" can be established by the parent on the child’s behalf.

Although we like to think of the funds in your "Roth IRA" as retirement funds, there are many other advantages. For example, you may be able to use some of the money for the purchase of a home, or for unusual medical expenses. However, the main benefit remains the tax free accumulation of income. If you stick with a regular program of saving in this manner, by the time you are my age you will have amassed a small fortune.