If someone was born in 1914, there was only a 1% chance that he/she would survive till the age of 100.
Thanks to medical advancements including the eradication of many deadly diseases, there is now a 50% probability that a child born today lives to a 100. In Japan, this number is 109 years.
Is this good? Indeed, it is wonderful news. But what matters is not the age itself, but the quality of the life we live.
Would we rather die 70 happy and carefree, or 100 stressed and depressed?
We are presented with many choices. The work we do (and the consequent stress we take on), the food we eat, the health we neglect, the exercise we strive to be regular with, the sabbaticals we take (yes, refuelling is a good idea – otherwise we are all just rats in a rat race!), the spiritual practices we so wish we could do, among many others.
The choices we make today, will go a long way towards improving our lives.