By Atty. Antonio P. Pekas
Within this month I will turn into that ripe old age. But wait. They say that when you are a vegetarian you are like 10 years younger. So I will be like 61?
At any rate, whether I am 61 or 71, I am old enough that I have no choice but to be contented with what I have or whatever I attained. No more getting frustrated for failing to achieve something. Contentment is the key. Having money or not having some is immaterial. I should be at peace, and I am at peace.
For those things I have dreamed about in my younger years which will require many years to achieve, I have already let go of these. In short this is the age where success is assured or failure is accepted. Such are immaterial. Both results in contentment.
To get to this point, so many frustrations were overcome, so much pride were swallowed. Many successes were also attained. All contributed to the matured me that I am now.
If you got to this age and you are still frustrated in a way, I can only say, God bless you.
So where to from here? I don’t really know if I am on the right path, but what am doing now is to entrench myself into the contentment I have developed. The first base is my body. It is too late for me to be getting sick out of carelessness. If ever I will have to go through such a problem, it should be because of old age, about which we cannot to anything. God’s will is the right phrase for that.
If one gets sick due to alcohol or other vices at this age, It is called stupidity. The same is true if it is due to lack of discipline. I have seen people older than me who have to take in medicines to control their cholesterol and yet they go on eating food known for their high cholesterol content.
The same thing with a lot of other people medically advised against drinking as alcohol is bad for them but they still drink with abandon on special occasions, and often ending in fatality.
There is a tagalog phrase for these: “Walang pinagkatandaan.”
Another thing am taking care of is getting the right dose of exercise. Moderate exercise is the phrase doctors use. That of course is relative. I think I know what is moderate for me.
To sum things up, with contentment, we can use whatever time is left for us to learn the things we always wanted to learn if still appropriate. That way, when the time comes for us to go, we will at least be better rounded for next life—thus a better karma. I am a believer of that. This is the right time to prepare. In that context, life begins again at 71.**
