101
WAYS TO STAY YOUNG
Richard de Meath
All rights reserved, no part of this publication may be reproduced or
transmitted by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise,
without written prior permission of the publisher.
Author: Richard Christian de Meath
© 2009 101 WAYS TO STAY YOUNG
INTRODUCTION PAGE 4
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS PAGE 6
LIST OF CONTENTS PAGE 7
101 WAYS TO STAY YOUNG PAGE 10
APPENDIX PAGE 108
INTRODUCTION
Every book begins with a single thought. In this instance, the thought was more a flash of divine inspiration, something that came to me in the middle of the night and refused to go away.
Over the past few decades, I have grown accustomed to people telling me how young I look. Vanity encourages us to believe these words! They give our ego a little boost, encourages us to believe we somehow possess a little magic.
However, as each year passes, inevitably turning into decades, even I could not fail to observe how many close friends seem to age quickly, while the lucky few remain firmly locked in an unsullied state untouched by the ravages of time.
This is what gave birth to an idea!
Actually, as I wrote in the first paragraph, this idea came to me during the dark hours of the night, in the middle of a ferocious lightning storm!
At the time, I was visiting London, invited as guest of honour to a media gathering. Like many such events, the occasion, although pleasant, went on for a long time. At the end of the evening, I returned to my room feeling quite tired.
I collapsed into bed, surrendering myself to a deep sleep. Several hours later, I awakened to the sound of loud thunder and listened as torrential rain drummed noisily against the roof. Sharp flashes of lightning lit the ceiling.
Unexpectedly, the image of a book entered my mind. In front of my eyes, I could clearly picture this book with white wings on the cover. There was also with a plain view of its title, the title that adorns the cover of this book.
Now wide-awake, I threw back the bedclothes and got out of bed. I scrambled into my weekend bag for my diary and pen. Excitedly I wrote the title down, nervous that it would be forgotten once I returned to sleep.
When morning dawned, I could not wait to discuss my vision with my hosts over breakfast. Their reaction was very positive, even offering to supply me with the first two articles. Thus encouraged, I decided to place my uncompleted book to one side and focus my attention on this new work.
Over the following week, I quietly approached one hundred friends, associates and close relations. I briefly outlined the project, while at the same time explored their thoughts. Within less than a week, I began to receive a remarkable response from across the world.
To cover every option and receive as broad a response as possible, I asked each writer to contact his or her friends, spreading the net as widely as possible.
I offered very little guidance, preferring instead to see what divine inspirations came back from them.
The only guideline I gave was to limit each writer to limit themselves to one hundred and fifty or two hundred and fifty words.
I little imagined that within the matter of a few short days an enormous torrent of replies would overwhelm me. It was truly delightful to find so many shared the same thoughts, whilst others offered something new and refreshing.
This is where I faced the complex work of sorting them out for inclusion in this book. I sifted carefully through each reply and in the end, chose one hundred that I felt explained how to stay young. The extra offering is my own!
The one hundred people who have written the pages of this book address nearly every aspect of life, neatly laid out in a few succinct paragraphs. These writers cover almost seven decades, from the spiritually inclined, the fitness devotees, practitioners of yoga and meditation, those who commune with nature, world travellers, to those people who appeared not to do anything that merits special attention and eventually those who have a particular love of food!!!
The youngest contributor is just nine years old!
They are all here, each with their special slant on what makes them a typical cross-section of everyday society. It is quite likely you will find several who mirror your thinking, give you pause to ponder on what they say and perhaps change your life into one that will retain its hold on youthfulness for an extra decade, or two!
I apologise to my friends and their friends who responded and have not succeeded in appearing in this book, but who knows…!
I hope you agree with my selection, and if you too wish to have your say, please do not hesitate to contact me.
You never know, you just might appear in the next volume.
The contents of this work alone will give us all hope for the future. I know it has already changed my life for the better.
Richard de Meath
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to thank all those who have responded to my call to write their thoughts on what helps them to remain youthful.
I know many of the writers, but others I do not know, who are friends of friends. I have spoken with complete strangers over the telephone, to others who have contacted me by email and letter, but have not yet met.
This last statement is something I would like to remedy. Within the next year, I intend to take up travel once more. On these extended journeys, I will make it my business to meet each writer you will meet within these pages face-to-face.
I am eternally thankful to each of them for placing their trust in me, and for giving me permission to use their words wisely. It is my earnest hope that these writings give as much pleasure and guidance to you as they have to me.
If you do not like what your life story had to say
so far, then the time has arrived to change it!
Stephen Couling
NEW SOUTH WALES
CURIOUSITY OF YOUTH
Staying young is an attitude of mind.
I keep fit – cycling like a demon around Sydney every day. I don’t drink, don’t smoke, don’t use recreational drugs, keep the coffee consumption down, stay off sugar and all processed foods. I spend time outdoors walking, riding, swimming, sailing – anything adventurous
I try not to be too distracted by the woes of life – and avoid the media where possible. If you want to true vision of life then go sit in a park on a sunny day at lunch-time: see how everyone is there enjoying each other’s company.
If you are serious about wanting to remain young you can observe that, without thinking, children are unconsciously able to do it. They are about us all the time, their example of discovering new joy in small things is right before us. This sense of curiousity feeds their interest and is how they continue to learn. Only when this tangible sense of innocence dries up, will the child no longer have the desire to discover anything new!
Despite all its many supposed ills, we each live in a wonderful world, an exquisite place of marvels we are able to share with each other.
I rejoice for everything in my life, for I exist in a beautiful world and believe we all called upon to take pleasure in what it has to offer, and use its benefits to bring more happiness to each other.
To this end I continue to hang on to some of that innocence of my inner childhood, and to do something joyful each new day.
Anna Sienniak
POLAND
THE MAGIC COAT OF YOUTH
PART 1
The human being is a wonderful and magical creation. In order to experience the miracle of eternal youth, we do need to remember a few basic rules. Feeling comfortable in your own body forms the basis of the human existence.
Such feeling creates an invisible energy, which is like a ‘coat of enchantment’ covering and connecting both our body and soul. Scars and wrinkles can appear not only as a result of external factors, but also as a side effect of inner personal experiences that begin to unbutton our magical coat.
This is why it is we who consciously or unconsciously create our appearance through our internal being. As if by magic the lines of joy, sadness, hope and resignation are being drawn on our faces, at the same time revealing the map of roads that we have travelled. It means that as careful as we are to look after our body, we should also take care of our thoughts. It is really very easy to be poisoned by negative thoughts, yet it is true that positive thinking frees the strengthening powers, which make us feel happier and healthier.
Even though we are not able to see our thoughts and we cannot measure them by means of an apparatus, they do have an enormous power and effect.
If you belittle yourself in your thought process you will definitely feel undermined, and what is more, you will take on the appearance of an embittered man. On the other hand, in thinking of yourself in a positive way you are able to influence your physical condition, thus helping your body to remain young.
Peter England
ENGLAND
ETERNAL YOUTH
I was initially amused when asked to write a page for this book, especially as I work in the cosmetics industry and advise people on how to look their best.
In my experience, those who look truly young, and I count myself among their number, are the ones who take great care of their diet, look after their body, refuse to drink to excess and certainly never smoke.
The old saying that you can never drink enough water is very true, and I drink a minimum of three litres a day without fail. Because I am a bit on the thin side, I do not have to worry about food overmuch, but I do know the value of a good diet, so rubbish food holds no appeal for me. I choose to drink water with my meals, (part of my three litres) rather than open a bottle of wine. For me, wine is something to enjoy when socialising with friends.
For a lad still in his twenties, you might be surprised to find I never exercise, or visit a gym, simply because I seem to get enough exercise in my work, running up and down stairs, attending to the demands of clients, not to mention taking my dog, Jonnie, on a two-mile jaunt before bedtime.
I like to disco, to dance with my friends, to go on a foreign holiday to the sun twice a year and party, sensibly of course!
Anna Sienniak
POLAND
THE MAGIC COAT OF YOUTH
PART 2
Start to love, care for and look after your body and you will see that it will pay you back with a beautiful and radiating appearance (a small trick for the ladies to always maintain young breasts: when taking a shower alternate the temperature control between hot and cold; or at least after washing under a hot shower, rinse away the soap in a stream of cold water. If possible, do not also forget about an every day massage by means of the male hands!!!).
In my opinion, the best anti-wrinkle treatment is positive thinking towards the world that surrounds us and secondly, giving in to your personal massage specialist who lives inside every human being, namely MR SMILE.
Did you know that there are seventeen facial muscles involved when we smile? Smiling also makes numerous other muscles move as discovered by the wonderful personality Charles Darwin, including our diaphragm, chest and peritoneum, which leads to the massageing of the heart, lungs, liver and pancreas.
One of Solomon's proverbs says: " The joy of the heart results in health; the disheartened spirit makes the bones dry". Well, from time to time I recommend reading a good book, watching a funny film and smiling while walking, working and in fact whenever you can.
It may seem trivial but it truly can do wonders to keep your magical coat buttoned.....And your spirit will be forever young .....For sure!!!
Peter Birnie
ENGLAND
SECRET OF YOUTH
I think the secret to a long life is being enthusiastic about everything from day to day, it exists in seeing excitement and beauty in the world around yourself, and being able to express your gratitude for this fact.
Having the ability to spend plenty of time in communing with nature is a definite plus. I do this on a regular basis, which helps me to keep my feet firmly planted on the ground, as well as encourageing a sense of inner peace.
Enjoying the freedom to be expressive of one’s opinions is important, just as much as does enjoying the real benefits that come from a strong sense of inner-belief. This gives me the confidence to be guided by my inner feelings.
Keeping things in life simple, straightforward, free flowing and having a good sense of humour. This gives me the ability to share a joke, to see the funny side of things and laugh at some of life’s misfortunes.
Obviously good diet helps too!
These few words might be a little brief, yet just like all the best things in life, the good ones often come in small packages.
Karen-Hui-Er Cheong
SINGAPORE
STAYING YOUNG IN MIND AND BODY
Surprisingly, as a happily married woman and the mother of 4 beautiful daughters, I am not a person that usually occupies myself with writing many words. It is true to say that I regard myself as not even being that good with words in the normal sense, though many people know me as one who talks a lot.