Congrats on your iPad, and your birthday! If I recall correctly, 70 is the age at which you are finally allowed to say anything that's on your mind and get away with it!
What I think the person who was telling you that was talking about is "cellular data." As you probably know, your iPhone and iPad can use Wi-Fi (as you may have in your home, or find in a library or coffee shop etc) just fine. For places where you need Internet access but there is no Wi-Fi around, those devices need "cellular data," which you pay for as part of a monthly plan.
What I think they were trying to say is that if you have cellular data on your iPhone plan, you *MAY* be able to use the iPhone to create a "wi-fi hotspot" using its cellular data. On my phone the option is called a "personal hotspot." If you turn it on and set a password, then other devices (like your iPad, or a friend's iPad) can use your cellular data like a wi-fi hotspot -- all they need is the password you set.
You'll need to check with your provider to see if they allow "personal hotspots" without charging you anything extra. If they don't allow it, you won't see the "personal hotspot" option on your iPhone's settings.
I do this all the time -- I want to use my iPad and keyboard to do some writing and email and such, but I'm outdoors enjoying the day or in a place that doesn't have Wi-Fi. I turn my iPhone's personal hotspot on, and a few seconds later my iPad has "picked it up" and away I go. Obviously, if you're using your phone's data you may need to be mindful of your plan's limit to avoid overcharges.
