Rock-Stars-of-Aging-by-Marc-Middleton

Rocks Stars of Aging
62
WORK AND PLAY
48: Centenarians Have Hobbies and Creative Pursuits
“Most people say that as you get old, you have to give up things. I
think you get old because you give up things.” -- Theodore Francis
Green, politician (October 2, 1867 – May 19, 1966)
More than one centenarian has told us they don’t understand how
anyone can ever be bored. Centenarians have passion for their
hobbies. It doesn’t much matter what the hobby is but having one you
are passionate about seems critical to longevity.
Hobbies enhance your creativity, help you think more clearly and
sharpen your focus, says Carol Kauffman, a professor at Harvard
Medical School. “When you’re really engaged in a hobby you love,
you lose your sense of time and enter what’s called a flow state, and
that restores your mind and energy.”
Painting is not just Harold Garde’s hobby. It’s his passion. Garde is
an accomplished fine artist who, at 88 years old, begins every day in
the studio creating widely collected and highly coveted abstract
works. “Creativity is a problem solving process that improves with
age,” Garde told us. “What makes a painting work? The answers are
always different and they never come from critics or collectors. The
answers come from the paintings themselves. My paintings will speak
to me if I stop long enough to listen.”
“Life is a great big canvas, and you should throw all the paint on it
you can.” -- Danny Kaye, actor
Rock Stars of Aging
62