Lifespan

We've got some difficult days ahead, but it really doesn't matter with me now. Because I've been to the mountain top and I don't mind. Like anybody I'd like to live a long life, longevity has its place, but I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will and he's allowed me to go up to the mountain, and I've looked over and I've seen the promised land. I may not get there with you, but I want you to know tonight that we as a people will get to the promised land. So I'm happy tonight, I'm not worried about anything; I'm not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.
        -- Martin Luther King, Jr, 1968

There are trees in California that are nearly 5,000 years old. Tortoises and whales live past 200. And they dug up a clam in Iceland this year that is believed to have been more than 400 years old.

A few humans lived past 115 in the 20th century. Absent the end of the world or some other catastrophic changes, many more will reach those levels this century. The average American can now expect to reach 77 or so – meaning half of us will pass that mark.

I had supper with a 101½ -year-old today. I’ve met a half-dozen or more centenarians this year and, of course, wouldn’t have guessed they were that old.

While spending time with one who has had such a long run, it’s probably hard not to consider the contrast between them and those who die so young.

When I’ve discussed longevity with seniors, many seem quite philosophical – claiming that they are pretty much ready for the end. Naturally, one can find few, if any, healthy 20- or 30-year-olds with a similar attitude.

Death, notes the Bard, is a necessary end that will come when it will come. But those of us who have observed both timely and untimely death can hardly help wonder why something as important as life itself should come and go in such a disorganized and apparently arbitrary fashion.

I haven’t observed any indication that those who have had more than a “fair share” in terms of lifespan have benefited in any clear way; nor have they seemed, based on the little I’ve learned about their lives, created any significant additional benefits during the bonus years.

Forgive me for closing with a poem that has been a bit overexposed over the past few years. I have made less out of this topic than I hoped and these lines don’t really wrap things up – but midnight approaches (a deadline that must be met if I’m to keep my November blog-a-day record intact) and I’m at a loss for a better close written in my own words:

I read of one who stood to speak

At the funeral of a friend. 

He referred to the dates on the tombstone

From beginning….to the end.

He noted that first came the date of birth

And spoke the following date with tears,

But he said what mattered most of all

Was the little dash between those years.

For that dash represents all the time

That she spent alive on this earth

And now all those who loved her

Know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not, how much we own;

The cars, the house….the cash, 

What matters is how we live and love

And how we spend our dash.

So think about this long and hard…

Are there things that you’d like changed?
For you never know how much time is left, 

That can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enough

To consider what’s true and real, 

And always try to understand

How other people feel.

And be less quick to anger, 

And show appreciation more

And love the people in our lives

Like we’ve never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect, 

And more often wear a smile. 

Remember that this special dash

Only lasts a little while.

        ~ Author Unknown ~