Age Differences

What is the first thing people in North America think when they see a couple that has a wide age difference, such as an older man with an attractive and much younger woman?

Often times they think that she must be a “gold digger”, or that he is just looking for a “trophy wife” or “trophy girlfriend”.

Many times, however, there are very practical reason why two people with a large age difference can find true love.

For example, some men have been so focused on their education, careers, etc. that they never had the right woman, or the time to devote to becoming fathers. So they may be in their 40’s or 50’s and still want to achieve their dream of being a father. Now, in their 40’s or 50’s, they have time and financial resources to focus on love, marriage, and having children. It’s also possible that they were married, and now divorced, and they are still open to having children with the right woman.

Biologically and medically, we know that it’s safer for women to have children in their 20’s and 30’s if at all possible. Women having children at these younger ages reduces the risk of birth defects, and reduces the chances of a problem pregnancy that could endanger the mother or the child.

Another scenario is simply… love. They say that we can’t always choose whom we fall in love with. So if we remove all the negativity from the social peer pressure, and stop worrying about what other people think, it only makes sense that given the opportunity, there will be a certain percentage of younger women falling in love with older men.

Having said that, of course, we need to be realistic. Some younger women will be totally comfortable dating, being in a relationship with, and eventually marrying a man much older than her. On the other hand, many younger women will not, and it will vary from individual.

In Colombian culture, it is much more acceptable for a younger woman to be with an older man, so the age differences become much less important. In general, the Colombian women are more concerned with love, faithfulness, attentiveness, and men who are both emotionally and financially stable.

“Financially stable” does not mean rich. It is innate for women to want financial security, so that they can tend to the needs of their family and/or children. This is not a bad thing, this is simply being biologically responsible.