Staying young has been a priority for my father for as long as I can remember. In his 60s, he decided that retirement just wasn’t for him after he noticed that many of his friends tended to pass away shortly after they gave up work. Aside from that, my mother refused to let him prowl around the house behind her.
And so, at 87 years young, dad continues to work as an insurance agent, driving himself to work everyday. He helps out with B’nai B’rith and, as the youngest of six, he’s stayed healthy enough to take responsibility for his older brothers and his sister-in-law when they were ailing over the years.
Life hasn’t always been so easy. Dad contracted tuberculosis during the war and was confined to a sanatorium in Weston. After recovering, he started selling war-bonds and then door to door insurance. He gradually built up clientele, some of whom he still has today.
My father’s regimen for keeping young is simple: a little romance, a little magic, a little golf, exercise every morning, healthy food, a drink before dinner and a glass of wine with meals. In the winter he tries to walk in the hall every day. Much to mom’s horror, dad has discovered orthotics and now shows up everywhere wearing running shoes.
It’s the mischievous twinkle in his eye that wins everyone’s heart as he still finds time to entertain kids with magic tricks and to stay in touch with life-long friends.
