Ninety Plus

It's no longer rare to hear about people living into their nineties or even over one hundred and remaining well and alert. A friend's mother who reached the ninety mark was bluntly asked, "Aren't you weary of this world? You're not independent any more. Do you want to continue living?" Without skipping a beat, she said, "But I'm still curious. I'm curious about what kind of people my grandchildren and great-grandchildren are turning out to be, how the world is changing with the new technology and all.

At the age of 75 the Japanese painter Hokusai (1760-1849) said, "All that I have produced before the age of 70 is not worth taking into account. At 73, I learned a little about the real structure of nature, of animals, plants, trees, birds, fishes and insects. In consequence, when I am 80, I shall have made still more progress. At 90, I shall penetrate the mystery of things; at 100, I shall certainly have reached a marvelous stage; and when I am 110, every thing I do, be it a dot or a line, will be alive." Hokusai teaches us that the wisdom of old age lies in renewal, in meeting new challenges and looking for fresh meanings.