OPINION: Living one day at a time

That old saying, “Live every day as if it were your last” is supposed to be a common-sense way to live one’s entire life. Most of us, however, live every day fully expecting to still be here years from now.

Not so when you’re in your mid 80s and beyond. Octogenarians live every day knowing there is a limit to how much time we have left. It’s a little tricky to plan very far ahead when one has already passed the average life span.

Younger people don’t like to talk about it, but it’s not unusual for older folks to contemplate their demise. It is basically just nature taking its course, so for the sake of our loved ones, it’s important to take care to uncomplicate matters so we won’t be leaving complicated matters for the family to figure out.

It’s not like we older people constantly dwell on dying, but I must admit, we are more apt to read the obituaries first as we open the newspaper or log online. We notice familiar names and feel some disquiet when it’s someone we knew or went to school with decades ago. I don’t think it’s a feeling of anxiety so much, just an acknowledgement of, yes, my peers are departing.

Everyone has some concept of the hereafter. Some believe in eternal life; others believe in eternal sleep. Whatever our belief, when we’re young, we naturally assume we have plenty of time ahead of us. We enjoy being able to plan ahead and to think to the future.

At an advanced age, those options are no longer available to us. We have learned to think in terms of living one day at a time.

Someone once told me while they were anticipating the need for surgery, that when they die, they hoped it would happen while they were on the operating table. Someone else told me they would prefer to have an illness deemed as terminal that would give them some time to prepare themselves and their family.

When it comes down to it, most of us have very little control over living and dying, and there’s no certainty for when our time will come. Uncertainty may add to any unease we might feel, but it doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy every day we have remaining.

People my age may deal with a host of health problems, and one has a tendency to contemplate death more genuinely when we have serious health issues. It’s harder to stay positive when you don’t feel good. Thankfully, our doctors are dedicated to finding the right combinations of medicines and treatments to keep things under control.

Aging can still be a challenge, but I am extremely grateful for modern-day medicine. Doctors keep us going, trying everything in their power to prolong our lives, prescribing medicines and treatments that give us the ability to continue living and to enjoy quality of life.

I can’t imagine what it was like in the days of my grandparents when there were few medications available to help ward off aging. People died much younger on average, and surely suffered far more than my generation. Although one of my grandmothers lived to an advanced age, I’ve always remembered her pain from severe headaches. They were probably migraines but I don’t think she ever took anything for it. Not even aspirin, although it would have been available by then without a prescription. I know my grandparents rarely went to the doctor, and I don’t remember them ever being hospitalized.

Today, we are incredibly fortunate to have good hospitals, good doctors, nurses and a host of other skilled medical professionals. We have brilliant scientists seeking cures and new medications, and researchers doing arduous studies that take years to find solid answers. We are fortunate to have private health insurance and government medical programs that are designed to give everyone equal access to the finest medical care in the world.

Unfortunately, the biggest threat to our great health system are the politicians who keep trying to take it away from us, or are hellbent on messing it up!

I’m thankful for every new day that gives me another chance to see or hear from my loved ones, to enjoy their accomplishments and happy times. I’ll take every extra day I can get.