Reduce, Simplify – and Live Longer!

Be Inspired Today!

As my regular readers know, I believe we are happier when we simplify our lives – reducing our demand (especially for “stuff”), and re-using rather than buying new.  Happiness also happens when we focus on the things which are important to us – such as family, friends  and enjoying their company – instead of entertaining lavishly, for example.

I came across this theme when reading The Japan Times.   A venerable Japanese gentleman said

Don’t be crazy about amassing material things. Remember: You don’t know when your number is up, and you can’t take it with you to the next place.

I liked what he said.

At the time of the article, Doctor Shigeaki Hinohara  was 97 years old and still practicing at the hospital and teaching facilities he helped to develop into Japan’s leading facilities.  Oh, and since the age of 75 he has published 150 books!

As founder of The New Elderly Movement, he encourages others to live a long and happy life.

Dr. Hinohara was born in 1911, when the average Japanese person was unlikely to survive past 40.

He died in July 2017, having reached the ripe old age of 105 – he certainly practiced what he preached!

Here are some of my favourite quotes from him.

Energy comes from feeling good, not from eating well or sleeping a lot. We all remember how as children, when we were having fun, we often forgot to eat or sleep. I believe that we can keep that attitude as adults, too. It’s best not to tire the body with too many rules such as lunchtime and bedtime.

All people who live long — regardless of nationality, race or gender — share one thing in common: None are overweight.  I never get hungry because I focus on my work.

Always plan ahead. My schedule book is already full for the next 3 years, with lectures and my usual hospital work.

There is no need to ever retire, but if one must, it should be a lot later than 65. The current retirement age was set at 65 half a century ago, when the average life-expectancy in Japan was 68 years.

Share what you know. I give 150 lectures a year, some for 100 elementary-school children, others for 4,500 business people. I usually speak for 60 to 90 minutes, standing, to stay strong.

When a doctor recommends you take a test or have some surgery, ask whether the doctor would suggest that his or her spouse or children go through such a procedure. Contrary to popular belief, doctors can’t cure everyone. So why cause unnecessary pain with surgery? I think music and animal therapy can help more than most doctors imagine.

To stay healthy, always take the stairs and carry your own stuff. I take two stairs at a time, to get my muscles moving.

Pain is mysterious, and having fun is the best way to forget it. If a child has a toothache, and you start playing a game together, he or she immediately forgets the pain. Hospitals must cater to the basic need of patients: We all want to have fun. At St. Luke’s we have music and animal therapies, and art classes.

Find a role model and aim to achieve even more than they could ever do.  My father went to the United States in 1900 to study at Duke University in North Carolina. He was a pioneer and one of my heroes. Later I found a few more life guides, and when I am stuck, I ask myself how they would deal with the problem.

It’s wonderful to live long. Until one is 60 years old, it is easy to work and to achieve one’s goals.  But in our later years, we should strive to contribute to society.  Since the age of 65, I have worked as a volunteer. I still put in 18 hours, seven days a week and love every minute of it.

If you were looking for inspiration today, you came to the right place!  Which of his thoughts resonated most with you?

Photo Credit:  JUDIT KAWAGUCHI