[Opinion] 100 Years of Marathon

The centenarian age is just around the corner. It is estimated that more than 2,000 centenarians are living in this country. Some 60,000 old men and women who are over 100-years-old are living in the U.S and about 15,000 in Japn. According to the U.S. Statistical Office, the number of centenarian men and women are increasing rapidly to reach 800,000 in 2050. Longevity is seen as God`s blessing, but quality of living matters when it comes to living long. Otherwise, the blessing might turn into a disaster. It becomes meaningless if you suffer from poverty, illness and loneliness. Is there any way to catch the two birds of `longevity` and `quality of life`?

They say that people become more attached to life, as they grow older. People facing a death tend to have stronger desire to live. This country has a higher suicide rate than other countries in old population, however. The fact that they choose to kill themselves when they are supposed to enjoy the rest of life proves how desperate and frustrated they are. Average life span of Koreans was 63 years old until 1970. They married, raised children and then faced a time to leave this world. Then the problem emerged, as people began to live longer. They had not much money left after sending children school and realized that it was hard to depend on their children.

Apart from the financial hardship, old couples are not accustomed to spending much time with each other. After retirement, they are supposed to live together for 20 to 30 years. But wives often find their husbands unsatisfactory and the men, in turn, feel isolated. They face problems in and outside house. The government must develop due measures to create jobs for these old people. There was no serious problem with old populations in the agricultural society, because they still had something to do.

Dr. David Snowden in the U.S. wrote a report titled `Graceful Late Years,` after noticing that nuns live long and healthy. According to the report, there are two secrets in nuns` healthy long life. One is prayer and meditation. They play a role of cushion, absorbing sorrow and pain. The other is the power of community. Nuns learn to help others and respect each other in their communities, which is good for longevity. October 1 is the old people`s day. Institutional arrangements must be put into place, but what is also important is to prepare for a 100 years of marathon of lifetime.

Hong Chan-shik, Editorial Writer, chansik@donga.com