Centenarians[i]
On My Birthday
Today
is my birthday. I’m now 73; so I have twenty-seven years left to get ready for
my hundredth birthday. The authors’ (sited below) objective is to get us to
increase our curiosity about being 100 years old or older. The background for their project
is that are a growing number of negative aging stereotypes (ageism). So, they developed a book of individual
stories about centenarians to stimulate our curiosity in the battle against
ageism.
To
accomplish their goal, they interviewed 24 persons who are 100 years or more.
“Each Person was asked to retell, using their own words, something about
themselves and the social context that shaped their lives.”
To
encourage a story telling approach, they were asked to discuss the following
questions:
· What is it like to have lived one
hundred years?
· What, in your opinion has
contributed to longevity
· What matters today?
What did they
find?
People
wanted to talk about their early years and they gave the following advice items
to those of us who desire a long life. They were:
· Lead a simple life
· Eat well
· Work hard
· Stay interested in events and
surroundings
· Help others
· Be moderate in all things
· Maintain a sense of humor
· Keep Active
Whoops,
I must end here as it is time for my morning jog in the neighborhood
[i] Koch, T.,
Power, C., & Kralik, D. (2007).
Researching with Centenarians, International Journal
of Older People Nursing 2, 52-61
Correspondence: tina.koch@newcastle.edu.au
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