Longevity

While I was growing up, I never thought I would become a nonagenarian (I am 93) but here I am, together with a younger sister who at 91 is continually faced with the challenge of aging and having to respond to queries from curious friends about our secret for longevity.

- PAGBABAGO FLORANGEL ROSARIO BRAID

For over a decade, my husband who passed on at 99 (40 days short of the magic 100), went through a similar experience. Andy with his wit and humor, decided to coin a limerick that goes: "Cigarettes and whisky, and wild wild venison."

Having to face a similar question during a recent gathering, my sister and I decided to do the seme by coming up with this response: "Lipstick, champagne, Chanel No. 5."

Levity aside, we may have inherited the genes of two grandmothers who lived with us during our childhood years. One, the mother of our mother, passed on at 84, and the other, the grandmother of my father, at 98.

Recently, a colleague shared a piece of good news, (depending on your stance on this matter) which she says, came from a reliable source: That it won't be long before the average age of passage is 125. This, because of advances in health and medical science, and changes in lifestyle. If this were true, it should provide countries with rising longevity cause for alarm. But the good news is that it is a fact that people tend to have fewer children when the rate of longevity increases. This means that the threat of overpopulation and the lack of resources and carrying capacity of existing infrastructure would not be so burdensome.