This was a great read. One thing I strongly dislike about American (and similar) society is how much we normalize complete deterioration as we age.
I’m currently residing in Taiwan and every morning I always see elderly people at the park walking, practicing tai chi, hanging on the monkey bars, doing leg swings arm circles and other dynamic stretches. Sometimes I’m usually one of the YOUNGEST people there (I’m 28).
Sometimes I practice doing handstands and other acro skills on the grass and I remember an elderly man who used to always watch me practice. At first, I thought it was because he was intrigued, but later I realized he was studying me. After about a week of him watching me, I went to the park one day to go for a walk. I saw him and he waved at me. Once he had my attention he immediately did a handstand and wanted my feedback! A few weeks later I watched him attempt a handstand (with better control) and then he tried to fall over and land in a bridge. Since he didn’t quite have the flexibility to do a proper bridge, his feet slipped and he landed on his back and got up like it was nothing. It reminded me of when I was learning this as a child and kept landing on my back yet wasn’t bothered by it. I didn’t ask him his age but that man had to be at least 70 years old. Witnessing the elderly exercise daily honestly made me look forward to getting old, which is something people most people in my age fear.