On January 28, 1997, an interesting article appeared in The Australian, a newspaper in Australia. The article was discussing the birthday party of Jeanne Calment, who was celebrating her 122nd birthday in her nursing home in the south of France.
She was born in Aries, France in 1875, a year before the invention of the telephone. She remembered the builders erecting the Eiffel Tower, and when she was a teenager she met Vincent van Gogh. She was an adult when the Wright Brothers first flew in 1903, and she was already drawing a pension when Hitler invaded France.
She was born in Aries, France in 1875, a year before the invention of the telephone. She remembered the builders erecting the Eiffel Tower, and when she was a teenager she met Vincent van Gogh. She was an adult when the Wright Brothers first flew in 1903, and she was already drawing a pension when Hitler invaded France.
Her feat was impressive because very few experts believe that people can live to that age. I remember when Johnny Carson had a woman on his show who was celebrating her 110 birthday. She said that she smoked until 107, and only stopped smoking because her caregivers were afraid she might fall asleep with a lit cigarette. She also drank wine every night as part of her daily regime. She ate fats and sweets and just about every other thing that we are told is unhealthy. When Carson prompted her further, she shared that she had buried several husbands, they just couldn’t keep up with her. She had a great sense of humor and loved life.
Jeanne Calment shared that she was not athletic in her youth and never a health fanatic. She gave up smoking – even if it was only two a day – at 117. She gave up her daily glass of port only a few months before her birthday. Jeanne said that she enjoyed everything and said that she spent her life with a smile on her face and expected to ‘die laughing.’
A lot of studies have come out over the years regarding extending a person's lifespan. One study linked lifespan to attendance at the opera; another to the price of a person’s house. A desk job will shorten life, one theory goes, but regular sex might extend it. A 22-year study of 750 white middle-class men who had reached 70 years old showed that ‘socially dominant men,’ the type most likely to monopolize conversations, interrupt others, and constantly compete for attention, were significantly more likely to die earlier than their more relaxed counterparts.
Dame Mary Barbara Hamilton Cartland was an English author, historian, playwright, political speaker, lecturer and media personality. She lived to 98 years old. She was one of the most prolific and commercially successful authors of the twentieth century. Her 723 novels were translated into 36 different languages. Some sources estimate her book sales at more than 750 million copies. When she was 95 she said that she felt like a girl of 18. “I haven’t a single line or mark on my body. That is amazing for somebody my age. People my age have black and brown things on their arms. I have nothing at all.”
She stated that staying active and taking calcium is the secret to a long life. She said, “The other day I went to an old people’s home and there they were, poor old things, sitting in front of the television looking worse than usual. So I asked this frightfully old lady how old she was, she said 60!”
“Now you can’t stop your body from growing old, but your brain can remain young forever. If you go to most old people’s homes they just sit there, waiting to die. The television going all the time is enough to kill anybody.” Dame Cartland always said that. "One could never say thank you enough.”
There are obviously many factors in the aging process. One predominant factor is that aging is largely mind over matter; if you finish one job then look forward to starting another. Dame Barbara Cartland wrote a new book every two weeks. Whatever your interests are, then pursue them and keep your mind active. Once the brain stops working, everything else starts declining very quickly. A sense of humor, and a joy of living, seems to also be a common factor of the individuals with long life spans.
For many of the individuals who have long life spans, it doesn’t matter what they are eating or drinking. The biggest factor appears to be their mental attitude.
Make sure you have plenty of LEFL; Laughter, Excitement, Fun and Love in your life. Be blessed and be well.
To inspire and empower.
Jeanne Calment shared that she was not athletic in her youth and never a health fanatic. She gave up smoking – even if it was only two a day – at 117. She gave up her daily glass of port only a few months before her birthday. Jeanne said that she enjoyed everything and said that she spent her life with a smile on her face and expected to ‘die laughing.’
A lot of studies have come out over the years regarding extending a person's lifespan. One study linked lifespan to attendance at the opera; another to the price of a person’s house. A desk job will shorten life, one theory goes, but regular sex might extend it. A 22-year study of 750 white middle-class men who had reached 70 years old showed that ‘socially dominant men,’ the type most likely to monopolize conversations, interrupt others, and constantly compete for attention, were significantly more likely to die earlier than their more relaxed counterparts.
Dame Mary Barbara Hamilton Cartland was an English author, historian, playwright, political speaker, lecturer and media personality. She lived to 98 years old. She was one of the most prolific and commercially successful authors of the twentieth century. Her 723 novels were translated into 36 different languages. Some sources estimate her book sales at more than 750 million copies. When she was 95 she said that she felt like a girl of 18. “I haven’t a single line or mark on my body. That is amazing for somebody my age. People my age have black and brown things on their arms. I have nothing at all.”
She stated that staying active and taking calcium is the secret to a long life. She said, “The other day I went to an old people’s home and there they were, poor old things, sitting in front of the television looking worse than usual. So I asked this frightfully old lady how old she was, she said 60!”
“Now you can’t stop your body from growing old, but your brain can remain young forever. If you go to most old people’s homes they just sit there, waiting to die. The television going all the time is enough to kill anybody.” Dame Cartland always said that. "One could never say thank you enough.”
There are obviously many factors in the aging process. One predominant factor is that aging is largely mind over matter; if you finish one job then look forward to starting another. Dame Barbara Cartland wrote a new book every two weeks. Whatever your interests are, then pursue them and keep your mind active. Once the brain stops working, everything else starts declining very quickly. A sense of humor, and a joy of living, seems to also be a common factor of the individuals with long life spans.
For many of the individuals who have long life spans, it doesn’t matter what they are eating or drinking. The biggest factor appears to be their mental attitude.
Make sure you have plenty of LEFL; Laughter, Excitement, Fun and Love in your life. Be blessed and be well.
To inspire and empower.
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