Hanging out with Septuagenarians

It wasn’t planned at all. Before I knew it, I crossed paths and built friendly relationships with people aged 70+. Initially, it felt a bit unusual to be befriended with people of my parents’ age (not to have peers around, physically) especially after living in Berkeley where a hyper-invigorated youth who are swerving between breakdowns and ecstasy 24/7, experiencing the world’s highest possible competitions in campus setting and job market. Although the Bay Area and Silicon Valley setting might sound pretty exciting for the adrenalin-addicts, it cannot be good for one’s psyche or overall health in the long run. I highly doubt that scheduling mini-sessions of mindfulness workshops, yoga retreats or other spiritual practices in one’s busy life are doing any good. In fact, it is probably confusing the body due to the opposite signals that the body keeps receiving all the time: party hard, work hard, signup for the Burning Man, check out the latest vegan and cannabis clubs of SF, always think positive and keep the action and fashion going etc).

There is also the middle-age adult crowd who are trying to adapt to the vibrations of the Bay Area youth, especially single tech guys or the partners and the parents/in-laws of the married tech-guys whose working partners/sons/daughters are hardly visible to them during the weekdays. But I won’t go into them since I know that my observations will verge on being cynical whereas this essay is about wellness, in the true sense of it as far as I have observed in the past 3-4 years in the same individuals whom I became friends with both in New Mexico and the Bay Area: Let’s call them Fab-7 (fabulous seventies and on).

Their background differs immensely: from the racist southern state families to violent family members, to awful eating habits, years spent in NY or other big cities (Istanbul included). Rich or middle-class with college education, usually more than 2-3 siblings etc. In short: Don’t put the blame on your family history for who you or your body have become. Clearly, phoenix is more than a mythological bird! If you have seen only a few videos of the wonderful Prof. Neil Barnard, you know what I mean by this. He always jokes about his place of birth (Fargo!) and their eating habits.

The Fab-7s current life styles are amazingly similar, and that is what matters:

Most  live in nature, not in cities (by choice), they have a deep connection to plants and animals which makes their vegetarianism and recycling more than just fashionable, politically correct and cool. They have become relatively wealthy after their thirties if not earlier so currently, they don’t worry about poverty. They feel each & every aspect of their oneness with the universe and EACH of them has created or ‘learned’ one language or another to express it in their spiritual roots and practices: Be it in Pantheism, Buddhism, Shamanism or Islam. The ONE-ness with the universe, each and all being. Along with this strong spiritual connection comes the belief that your body is a gift like all other creations of the nature. A gift needs to be respected, cherished and taken care of. There comes their diet and exercise habits. Eating healthy, simple yet ritualistic (no fast food,  packed and microwavable stuff can be ritualistic)  becomes a form of maintaining the gift (body) and keep it as long as it lasts. This approach makes one content and in peace, and you want to do more and more regardless of what diet trends comes and goes.

They quit drinking coffee long time ago simply because it no longer agrees with them (sleep or palpitation, very common among elders). They are okay with green or herbal teas. No processed sugar, no alcohol. Most of them are going along with the gluten-free trend since the products are available almost everywhere in the States. I don’t know what they do when they travel abroad but I imagine it being challenging.  

They are great travelers. 1. Because they are healthy, 2. They are very eager to learn and be a life-long student, almost with a child’s curiosity but they are not nomads. They are very conscious about their habitat/house and they care a lot about it: they own one house in a clean, quiet neighborhood in nature, and always with a garden. The size differs greatly though.

Their positive attitude is not without care or concern about the world matters. In fact, quite the opposite. They read a lot, they meet new people, and they travel SO they are aware of what is going on in the world. BUT they created their haven (or heaven) on earth so they realistically know that the only way to contribute to the world affairs is in moderation: Donations to people or NGOs, writing letters, going to community meetings, voting, recycling, helping poor students etc. the whole time knowing that unless they themselves are healthy in body and mind, they can’t really contribute much. and writing a check is not necessarily the way to feel content about “contributing the world.” There needs to be a human connection, a face, some real interaction btw people.

They mostly do what they preach: In other words, in the years that I have been friends with them, I have not encountered contradictions or hypocrisies in their actions. They have enough sense of humor to point out their own conflicting actions and are comfortable joking about them. Of course, these small things are okay to joke about. They drive electric or hybrid cars so that they can joke about driving but at least they are not contributing to the fuel consumption or wars on oil!

They are physically active but they do it with pleasure or with a spiritual perspective: there is a big difference between them and the people who are trudging themselves to the gyms or Pilates studios just because some experts told them that ‘it is good for you’ and keep the body going.  Like going to church on Sundays to please others but also hope that it indeed is good for you if there is an afterlife.

No, the Fab-7s physical activities are fun and spiritually fulfilling too. The big combo menu: the Physical needs to be Spiritually satisfying. Ask them the details😊 but what I have observed is either the pet-combo (training a dog or even a horse, or watching birds, keeping the ‘learning’ going somehow?) or walk ritualistically (observing God’s creations in a constant state of genuine gratitude so it comes a worship, not a sport!)

Family-Friends: I am not sure about their family bonds BUT I believe they do their best to keep them based on our conversations. Some of the Fab-7s are/have been rebels in one way or another at some points in their lives but all experienced love. I don’t know much about their families or other friends so I need to skip this part which most longevity experts highlight repeatedly. 

To conclude, I am impressed with their passion to live a quality life with a series of satisfactory activities, to travel, to welcome new people and ideas, and to lead a healthy diet that discarded any heavy food or sugar (or anything that contains sugar). In Turkey, we have a celebrity professor, Canan Karatay, also a proud septuagenarian. She is our female Dr. Oz, a role model for millions despite the harsh criticisms from the others (they’re jealous!) I hope I will meet her one day, give her a hug, and share with her the miracles of my quitting sugar in my body. May God keep her energy along with the other members of my international Fab-7 Club!