The adult who remembers uncertainty is easier to approach with an unfinished question.

Certainty in an older person closes doors without meaning to. Somebody who has forgotten what not knowing felt like tends to answer quickly, correct efficiently, and leave no room for a question that is still half-formed. The adult who can recall being confused holds the pause a bit longer, which is exactly the space a younger person needs to work out what they are actually asking. That patience is remembered for decades.

When someone brings you something unfinished, resist completing it for them. Ask what they have thought so far, and let the silence run longer than is comfortable.