IS LIFE PASSING US BY?

In response to requests from friends who had missed the recent launch of The Senior magazine at Petrosains KLCC (21 Feb, 2017), I am sharng the slides from my talk on 'Active Ageing'. Here's the first slide (above), and a question for the audience - Do you agree retirement is the best time to enjoy life?

The response would depend very much on whether we have laid the foundation for a successful retirement. If the roots of a sapling do not get enough of the right nutrients, the sapling will not grow into a strong and sturdy tree that will withstand the vagaries of the weather.

Likewise, for our retirement years to be truly golden, we must ensure these six pillars (roots) are firm enough to buttress us against the challenges of our later years. The six pillars: good health, financial security, strong relationships with our family and friends, community service, a belief system to keep us grounded, and lifelong learning to help us grow and improve.

If we do not have all six pillars in place, or if some of these pillars are weak, we need to shore them up. Insufficient savings? Work on a plan to generate some income or cut back on spending. Too old to do the things we have always wanted to do? Says who? Age is just a number that Time has given us. It does not define who we are, or what we want to be. We are the drivers controling the steering wheel of our lives.

Retire from work, but do not retire from life. Live life to the fullest or see it pass us by. The march of time seems merciless as we enter our later years. It is as if the countdown has begun as soon as we hit our 70s, never mind the research studies that show a sharp rise in the number of centenarians worldwide. Do we want to make each moment count, and fill it with happy experiences? Or do we want to withdraw from family, friends and the world outside, and fill our days with regret and remorse, and all the bitterness of a life that could have been. What a sheer waste of precious moments as the clock ticks away.

So get rid of the doldrums and go out. Feel the sunshine and the breeze on your skin. Take time to smell the roses, play with your grandchildren. Recharge. Be grateful that you can get up in the morning to greet another new day. Growing old is a privilege denied to many.

Have fun, travel, explore, discover. This is the time to spend on yourself. Be selfish. The above photo is one of my all-time favorites taken at Gardens by the Bay, Singapore in May 2015. A total of 40 members from SeniorsAloud and U3A (KL and Sgor) went on this 3D2N trip. There was so much to see, do and learn. A truly diverse group of Malaysian seniors spending a fun weekend together.

No need for us to look across the oceans for an inspiring role model of graceful ageing. Right here on our shores we have our former PM's wife, YB Toh Puan Dr Siti Hasmah, 91, to show us how we should live life in our retirement years. We are never too old to pick up new skills. All it takes is a change of mindset and attitude. The world is our oyster if we let it be.

One of the biggest fears of growing old is loneliness and abandonment. This comes from the perception that older people are useless and unproductive. Harbouring such thoughts and feelings can lead to depression, and in some cases, to suicidal tendencies in the elderly. The best way to dispel such negative thoughts and pessimism is to be active. An idle mind is the devil's workshop, right? Join a seniors club or volunteer with an NGO that resonates with you. For a start, why not sign up for courses with University of the Third Age (U3A)? Not only will you widen your circle of friends, you will also enjoy the fun of learning new skills with your peers in a non-threatening environment, without the stress of exams and homework!

The ladies above signed up for U3A acrylic painting course as beginners. They soon discovered they had a flair for painting. The result - an acrylic art exhibition of their masterpieces held in Putrajaya. Goes to show that we are never too old to learn new skills, never too late to unearth our potential. Think of the sense of pride and achievement these ladies must have felt. We can all be like them. Take the initiative to explore new horizons. Be fearless. Never let our age stop us from trying new things that interest us.

When we spend our retirement years living a sedentary lifestyle, our muscles will soon atrophy. We will start complaining of aches and pains all over. And before we even reach our 70s, we become dependent on all kinds of aids, from walking aids to hearing aids and every other aid in between. It's time to get up from our favourite lazy chair and exercise. Don't fancy exercising on your own? Round up some friends for a qigong session, or join a group like Mrs Jagjeet's Nordic Walkers.

There are also groups that organize hiking-camping-cycling trips. Take your pick. Go google, or search Facebook to find out where these groups meet and how you can join them. Making resolutions to lose weight, eat well and exercise regularly produces no results. Translate your resolutions and good intentions into the right action to see results.

Nothing like spending time outdoors in the early mornings or late evenings doing exercises to keep fit. Here are some members of Malaysian Healthy Ageing Society (MHAS) brisk walking in Taman Jaya park a few Sundays ago. In another section of the park was a group of old friends enjoying a quiet board game. Good friends provide a strong support system in our old age. Cherish their friendship.

Don't fancy the physical demands of hiking or cycling? Take up gardening. Mowing the grass, raking dry leaves, carrying flower pots and weeding all help to strengthen our muscles and improve our flexibility. There's also the added joy of eating the fruits of your hard work if you have a garden of fruits, herbs or vegetables. Urban farming is gaining popularity among city residents. U3A also offers short courses on hydroponics, kitchen garden and mushroom cultivation.

Not only should we take care of our physical health, but also our mental health. Use it or lose it applies to our brain as well. Board games are great as mental exercises, so are doing crossword puzzles, sudoku and playing mahjong. All these help us to maintain our mental acuity and hopefully keep Alzheimer's at bay. Here are members of SeniorsAloud enjoying a mentally-stimulating game of Math Magic. The board game was invented by Malaysian Jimmy Yeoh.

The ladies of senior citizens clubs love to dance. We just wish the guys shared the same interest. No matter, as long as the ladies are having fun, the guys are content to sit and watch. Dancing is an enjoyable way to exercise the body. It is liberating as well. The above photo was taken at SeniorsAloud 'Golden Memories' dinner and dance in 2015.

Passion and Compassion - these two values have been at the core of SeniorsAloud's existence from its very beginning in May 2008. Working hard to extend SeniorsAloud's reach and promote an active lifestyle for seniors has become my passion. I am blessed to have a dedicated team of volunteers to support me for our events and projects. Our passion spills over into compassion for others that need a helping hand. We believe firmly that volunteerism adds meaning and purpose to life. There are so many ways we can contribute to community service. Just find the one you are comfortable with, and that works best for you.

For SeniorsAloud we have chosen to help by setting up a small initiative to look into appeals for assistance from the elderly or from NGOs that serve the elderly. Here are some of our past community service efforts made possible with funds raised at our annual dinners.

Given the platform to speak on active ageing to an audience of senior citizens, I could not pass up the opportunity to promote SeniorsAloud and U3A at the launch. I have been told these are the most active senior citizens groups on social media in Malaysia, and possibly in the region. So it should be easy for anyone interested to get in touch with SeniorsAloud or U3A to join their activities. Just google.

These are the 20 slides from my 30-min talk, with some added notes. If you qould like to know more about any of the groups mentioned here, contact SeniorsAloud. We are committed to promoting active living for senior citizens, and will put you in touch with the respective groups.

Delivering my slide presentation on 'Active Ageing' at the launch of The Senior magazine at Petrosains KLCC on 21 Feb 2017. 

(Update on 21 Feb 2021: The Senior Magazine published by Third Age Media is available at major bookstores.)

UNCLES WITH A MISSION

Don't play-play with these uncles. Those bulging biceps are for real, so are the six-packs. These seniors defy age. They certainly do not fit the stereotype image of frail and decrepit old folks.

'Use it, or lose it'. That applies not just to our brains, but to our muscles as well. As we enter the retirement years, it is so very easy to let ourselves go downhill mentally and physically due to inactivity. We move into the slow lane, and before we know it, we have slipped into that 'old already' mindset. Once entrenched there, it becomes our comfort zone. We adopt a sedentary lifestyle and in later years wind up having to deal with a host of health issues.

(L to R: Bee Kia, Hin Kwok and Siu Chi)
Photo: Team Strong Silvers

One excellent example of seniors who refuse to let age take a toll on them is Team Strong Silvers (TSS). They are on a mission to encourage Singaporeans both young and not-so-young to opt for an active lifestyle for fitness and good health. I had the opportunity to spend one morning chatting with them and watching them doing calisthenics at Yio Chu Kang stadium. I came away very impressed with what I saw and learned.

Formed in 2013, TSS comprises three core members Ng Bee Kia, 71, Ngai Hin Kwok, 68 and Ng Siu Chi, 58, who was away at the time of the interview. If there was a Seniors edition of Men's Health magazine, TSS would be a shoo-in for the cover. These images below bear testimony that their hard work has paid off. Their well-toned sculpted bodies are the envy of men decades younger than them, and I bet also secretly admired by the ladies.

Their daily exercise regime consists of at least an hour of calisthenics, and often some weightlifting as well. Bee Kia is a former weightlifter who once represented Singapore in the SEA Games. He still has the muscles to show for it. Hin Kwok is retired. Siu Chi is the only member still working. All three are committed to clean and healthy living. Absolutely no supplements, but plenty of workouts indoors and outdoors.

Photo: Team Strong Silvers

To Ng Bee Kia, doing housework is also exercising. As his wife is still working, Bee Kia does the mopping and cleaning at home. He has no complaints as he sees it as another way to work the muscles. Either we move our muscles, or watch them turn into flab.

So ladies, take note. Make your household chores a part of your daily exercise routine. You have a domestic helper to take care of that? Well, take up gardening then. Or be a hands-on grandparent. Running after the little children, or taking them out for a stroll is exercise. Anything so long as it keeps your limbs moving. Avoid a sedentary lifestyle at all cost, and you will reap the benefits in your old age.

Ng and Ngai were also featured in Straits Times Fit For Life supplement in December 2016. According to the article, Ngai, a doting grandfather of three, brisk-walks 11km every weekend around MacRitchie Reservoir, participates in 10km runs, and occasionally cycles long-distance, covering anywhere between 10km and 100km each time. If that isn't impressive enough, his home exercise regime includes doing 80 to 200 push-ups and squats. WOW!

Says TSS member, Robert Ho, who helps to promote TSS on social media, the biggest challenge TSS face is to change how older people think about health and fitness as they age. Taking supplements is not the answer. Neither is diet alone, although it is good to eat less and go for simple food as close to natural as possible. Equally important is to remain actve throughout the retirement years. Who better to carry this message to all uncles and aunties in Singapore than Ng and Ngai?

If you would like to know more about Team Strong Silvers, check out their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/TeamStrongSilvers/. Plenty of info, photos and videos, hopefully enough to motivate some of us to adopt a more active and healthy lifetsyle as we enter a new year.

SENIORSALOUD 2016 YEAR IN REVIEW

2016 - what a year it was! A great year for some, an 'annus horribilis' for others. But everyone would agree that it ended with more deaths than we cared to read about. A timely reminder that we should pay more attention to our health in the coming new year and beyond. We would rather read about birthdays and wedding anniversaries than obituaries.

For SeniorsAloud, 2016 was another eventful year, with further growth in membership, more events organized and wider reach on social media.

Here's a look back at the year that was for SeniorsAloud.

We started the year with a get-together for members at Penchala Hills. It was a pleasant evening spent chatting and playing Math Magic, an engrossing board game created by Jimmy Yeoh.

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In April, our members attended a free workshop organised by IEEE, TEMS, Gerontechnology Lab of Monash University and SeniorsAloud to learn more about the features and uses of smartphones. It was followed by a very interesting and informative tour of the lab, the first in Malaysia. Thank you, Associate Prof Dr Teh Pei Lee and your team of very knowledgeable facilitators.

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The highlight of the year has to be our 3D-2N Belum trip in June. We had such a great time in the outdoors. The trip was certainly a welcomed getaway from the hustle and bustle of the city, and an excellent opportunity for members to get to know one another better amidst the pristine backdrop of the Belum Valley. A video of the trip, courtesy of Alex Chin, is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTj16ShUufY

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SeniorsAloud and AUTORR Foundation co-organized a workshop in July to raise awareness of the prevalence of scams targeting seniors. Speaker Andrew Chia shared his list of the top 10 scams that we should be on the alert for.

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Our third visit to Kg Hakka was to join Victor Chin and Rakan Mantin group in celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival in September. We paid Grandma Kong a visit and watched as she offered prayers outside her house. It was a throwback to the old days when we held feasts, ate mooncakes and carried lanterns in the parade around the kampung.

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SeniorsAloud held its 3rd annual fund-raising 'Reunion Party' dinner and dance on 1 October which was also United Nations International Day of Older Persons. As in previous years, we had an excellent turnout. All tables were taken. Thanks to generous sponsors and donors, we were able to invite 19 guests from several NGOs, and give away more than 60 attractive prizes to lucky draw winners.

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While SeniorsAloud continues to remain non-political and non-religious, we do support human rights and calls for justice and transparency. For these reasons we participated in Bersih5 on 19 Nov as well as 'Walk 4 Maria' on 23 Nov. We are glad to have added our voice for these causes.

Community Service
Thanks to funds raised from our annual dinners, SeniorsAloud is able to help senior citizens and the elderly in need under our 'Grant a Wish for the Elderly' project. In January we covered the cost of cataract surgery for Mr Liow Cheng Loon, 69. As a red IC holder, he was not eligible for govt welfare aid. His plight was brought to us by Justin Cheah of Kechara Soup Kitchen. The surgery was carried out in January. We are glad that Mr Liew is now enjoying clear vision.

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We were happy to oblige when Keats Makandu, founder of Mums Sew With Love (MSWL) approached us for help to purchase an electric sewing machine so that the single mothers could sew more and earn more to support their children. On 12 May, SeniorsAloud team members Choke Ling, Kim and Lily were present at MSWL to hand over the machine. We hope it will make a difference and enable the moms to cope with the increase in orders for their high quality home-sewn products.

It was our pleasure to invite five of the single mothers out to celebrate Mothers Day with a concert and a buffet at VSQ @ PJ City Centre. It was a real treat for them and for us too to see their smiling faces.

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We ended the year with distribution of rubber gloves and face masks to two NGOs and a nursing home. The items were donated by Cranberry. Do contact us if you know of any NGOs or old folks homes that will welcome these items. 

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11 March marked the launch of our Friday Room for Improvement Day. Smartphones have made it so easy for us to snap photos of anything we see around us that should be improved. We can all be vigilant and help make our city clean and safe for all, regardless of age. Send the photos to SeniorsAloud for posting on our FB page. Please provide info of the date and place where the photos were taken. We have seen corrective action taken by the relevant authorities in response to some of the hazards that we have highlighted. 

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SeniorsAloud Newsletter
As not all members check their email regularly, we have made it a point to announce on our FB page when our monthly newsletter is out. To date we have not missed a single issue since June 2014 when we started sending out monthly newsletters. It is a challenge to organize events and activities that will appeal to seniors as they have such diverse interests. But we hope we have succeeded to some extent. To receive our free newsletters, just click on the link and submit: 
http://www.seniorsaloud.com/p/members-registration.html

Apart from the above list of events and activities, SeniorsAloud has also helped to promote (and participate) in many events organized by NGOs, and other organizations such as:

1. Alzheimer's Foundation of Malaysia (ADFM)
2. AUTORR Foundation
3. University of the Third Age (U3A), KL and Selangor
4. Kechara Soup Kitchen
5. Malaysian Healthy Ageing Society (MHAS)
6. Science for Healthy Living (S4H)

We look forward to doing more in 2017 to promote active ageing, lifelong learning and reach out to more seniors through our blog and FB page. Do help us to spread the word. 

Finally we would like to thank all our members, FB friends and sponsors who have supported us through another successful year. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! And deepest appreciation to SeniorsAloud team members who have been most generous with their time and energy in helping to organize the many events and activities held throughout 2016. Here's to a happy, healthy NEW YOU (and NEW US) in 2017!