Joyful Aging: A Publication of Probus Club of Chennai, a Book on Healthy Living by Senior Citizens
Gone are the days when the elderly were considered a burden to the family and society. Now they named as seniors who are providing valuable guidance to society. They form their own groups, clubs, and other social service organizations to serve society. One such club is the Probus Club of Chennai, sponsored by the Rotary Club of Chennai. The club has about 500 professionals and senior citizens as members. They organize regular meetings and have useful discussions about problems and solutions to problems that not only affect older people, but also Society.
Some of the services they extend to society are:
1. Award scholarships to deserving poor students.
2. Carrying out various health camps.
3. Visit nursing homes to encourage the less fortunate elderly who live there.
4. Honor Probus club members who have exemplary service activities with Probus Recognition Awards and non-Probus members with the Probus Excellence Award to encourage them to serve more in the future.
5. Celebration of International Women’s Day and International Day of the Third Age in which these awards will be distributed.
In addition to the above, the club encourages the talent of its members by carrying out various cultural activities. Writing talents are one of the most important among them.
To enhance writing talents, the club publishes books on the lives of seniors on all international seniors days, containing articles written by seniors, mostly members on various topics, especially those that have relevance. for the elderly.
So far, the club has published 25 books and the latest book was published on October 4, 2017 on the International Day of Older Persons this year, containing 87 articles contributed by members, which are permanent examples of a life happy and healthy. While it is not possible to give a count of all members, below are notes on members who have written on the health of older members along with a brief report on their articles:
Professor Dr. V. Balambal is a retired director of a prestigious women’s college, former president of a Rotary club who has traveled to several countries and reports that cancer, reproductive health, HIV, violence against women, dementia, osteoporosis, heart disease, diabetes, are vital issues for the health of women. However, there is a notable improvement in medical services. Although medical services have improved greatly, ignorance plays a very important role in the healthy lives of poor elderly women.
The former Rotary / Probus president also suggests the following steps to improve the lives of poor elderly women:
* It is important to plan for old age.
** One must be active and have freedom of movement.
(suggestions from other members are given in the following paragraphs)
Ms. Lakshmi Natarajan is an active scholar and continues her educational activities as a self-employed worker after her retirement.
1. Pick a new hobby or one that you have neglected for a long time.
2. Play with your grandchildren, children of the family and pets.
3. Learn something new like music, foreign languages, games and thus win new friends too.
4. Attend some local events preferably as a volunteer.
5. Teach in topics you know, theater groups or sports team.
6. Take weekend trips and travel a lot.
These six steps will keep one young even though they may be chronologically old adults.
Mr. RTNamasivayam, a retired engineer and acting club president, has the following suggestions to make.
1. One can have a permanent cook and a helper with him in the house. As a precautionary measure, you should keep police records of servants and you should also have a good relationship with local officials. Online services must be used effectively.
2. You can also choose nursing homes as another opportunity to live in a community of seniors. They should contact local officials to obtain Aadhar cards, ration cards, etc. with an ease that cannot be obtained through computer applications.
3. If the elder is wealthy, he may own a villa or apartment in a community housing complex. A sufficient bank balance must be maintained to meet any requirement.
Above all, health must be taken care of and the elderly must be punctual for all medical check-ups and regulate follow-up medication, if any.
Shri S. Gopalakrishnan, a retired CEO of a nationalized bank, gives suggestions on investment options. He has given a vivid account of investment options intended exclusively for seniors that will be helpful to those who have retirement funds with them for immediate investments in a prudent manner. Most of the time, people are misled by bogus investment companies offering very high interest rates and then they run away. For those people, these tips are very useful to deposit in government institutions with assured returns.
In short, there are two types of people that God has created, 1. privileged people 2. below privileged people. It is horrible to live in poverty, that too at the age of 70 years or more. The poet Avvaiyar (who was also very old) centuries ago, “It is horrible to live in poverty, that too, in youth.” The same can be corrected “It is horrible to live in poverty, that also in old age, where loneliness also tortures them.”
It is the duty of the most privileged to help and protect the less privileged. Through that act, they will also get the benefit of self-satisfaction and peace of mind.
That is the path to “Joyful Aging,” as explained in various articles in this book.