Happiness in Old Age
By Rudy A. Arizala
Santiago, Chile
In my old age, I found more peace and happiness because of simple living, devoid of diplomatic life, attending official functions and diplomatic dinners, luncheons and seemingly endless receptios and cocktails, all in the name of representing my country and government abroad.
Since my retirement from public service, my wife and I have a simple and peaceful life living in a two-bedroom apartment without the services of lived-in maids and chauffeurdriven vehicle. I don't even owned now a bicycle. This lack of means of transport, however, makes my walk around the neighborhood a delightful daily adventure. A mini-camera gifted to me by my one of my two sons which I always carry with me makes my daily walk enjoyable. It gives me immense happiness taking pictures of interesting objects or beautiful scenes I encounter along the way. It could be a solitary flower, a brown dried leaf which dropped to the ground, a newly-emerging green bud of a wild
plant by the wayside, and a white cloud tinted with gold or rainbow on the horizon.
Sometimes I am overtaken by a sudden downpour of rain or slight drizzle which afforded me to feel the refreshing sensation brought about by the raindrops. When not on my daily walk, from a cubicle of our small apartment where I have a laptop, (another gift from my son), I found delight and fulfillment in sharing ideas and exchanging information with my relatives and friends who are living in another part of the world. Such dialogues or constant contacts via the internet become a sort of rebonding process with them – of feeling being near them. I also found joy in spending time with our first granddaughter – a two-year old girl who is a source of immense delight to me and my wife due to her antics, prattles and innocent laughters. When not doting on our granddaughter, my wife and I have occasional cup of coffee or tea in one of the nearby coffee shops. Over a cup of tea or coffee, we talk of
mundane things or simply enjoy each other's company in mutual silence but with full understanidng of each other. In short, to quote Mr. Pico Iyer in his article “The Joy of Less”, (The New York Times, 7 June 2009), in old age or retirement, we live by “matching (our) wants to (our) needs,” and we discovered peace, joy and contenment,
for “happiness, like peace or passion, comes more freely when it is not pursued.” And if I may add: when it comes as part of old age.
Finally, it recalls to mind the statement of a young Dutch woman Etty Hillesum on her way to her death in a gas chamber in 1943, “the beat of my heart has grown deeper, more active, and yet more peaceful. . . My life is one long sequences of inner miracles.” And to quote what Ralp Waldo Emerson said towards the end of his life: “All I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator for all I have not seen.”
Old age happines is in simple living, companionship and in trusting the Lord.