Answer by Stan Hayward:

I am 83. Several years past my 'Sell by Date'.

I try to keep fit, and make more effort (though with less success) than when younger.

I don't make new friends, and every year I lose one or two, and forget to contact one or two others.

I spend much time trying to sort out things that need to be sorted by the time the end comes.

I put greater value on smaller things. That is, I try to enjoy everything I do; eating, walking, talking, and playing with the cat. It is a sort of reversion to childhood where you live for the moment.

I am a great believer in the philosophy of 'Plan as though you will live forever, but act as though you will die tomorrow'.

I no longer dwell on minor irritations, peoples faults, or things I have no control over.

I live a natural life of eating when hungry, sleeping when tired, and generally doing what I feel like doing most at the moment.

I don't dwell on dying, and rarely think of it except as an item in general planning.

Though some people of my age have been isolated by technology such as being computer illiterate and not comprehending the young of today, that has not affected me at all as I worked for years in the Computer animation field, which has always been at the forefront of technology.

So, how has my age affected what is important to me? It affects me in the same way as it affects everyone, and will affect you eventually.

It makes me put a value on who I know that I love, and what I have that gives me pleasure or helps my survival.

It enables me to see life in its simplicity, and gives me hope that the world in general will one day have enlightenment to live in peace.

A baby has three cries: I am hungry, I am lonely, I have pain. They are the only cries one needs to survive. Recognising those cries enables one to help others in need, and helping others makes it all worthwhile.

It is called Experience.

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