We’re Better Together (BY PHILIPPA)

 We were a small but stalwart (and heat resistant!) group that walked the cemetery on
Saturday morning, fleeing to the underground café afterward to refresh, and enjoy the
company and air conditioning (To be perfectly honest, I’m not sure which one I enjoyed
the most!)
We are so fortunate to live in a time of so much new information about how to age well.
One study that caught my attention is the Harvard Study of Adult Development. Robert
Waldinger, who has directed the study for nearly two decades has said:
“Good relationships keep us happier and healthier. Period”
And then there is the changing terminology, from lifespan to healthspan to…joyspan.
Dr. Kerry Burnight coined the word “joyspan”, in her work as a gerontologist, because
as she says: the experience of wellbeing and satisfaction in longevity, matters because
without it, long life is a drag.
And so, here is my joyful story of the day: you probably heard about the miners that
were trapped underground in B.C.? They sheltered for more than 60 hours in a refuge
chamber (basically a steel cage) with no outside communication, awaiting rescue they
hoped would arrive. When finally, rescuers were able to clear away all the debris and
gain access:
“They approached the refuge chamber and knocked on the door. Back at command
you could hear a pin drop, said Mr. Wessels [global safety chief for the mine’s operator].
One of the men opened the door. Are you okay? Asked the rescue crew. Well, we got
to catch up on some sleep, Mr. Wessels recounted the men inside answered.”