It's Christmas, so please excuse me for being personal and sentimental.
Many of us in our prime – I am 70 – have parents and aunts and uncles who are still enjoying their lives into their 90s.
My mom, Joann, who lives in Chatham, turned 95 in October. She has lived longer than most of her close relatives, and sadly, almost 50 years longer than her husband.
She is in good health, and we have our fingers crossed she will reach 100.
Since the COVID pandemic, Mom and I speak daily on the telephone. I usually call around 8 p.m. Some conversations are five minutes, but many go on much longer.
"So Mom, what are you doing?"
"Not too much," she says.
I remind her that at 95 she shouldn't be doing too much, although she often does laundry and cooks dinner every day.
We talk about the weather and family gossip.
I don't cook much, but I collect recipes and we both enjoy good food. We talk about food a lot. A new recipe I saw on the internet. Things we like or dishes my grandmother used to make.
It's settled that I will cook the Christmas turkey. Mom promises to make my grandmother's legendary cranberry salad again this Christmas. The main ingredients are cranberries, oranges, celery, nuts and lemon Jello.
We both watch many news programs, and we often speak about the day's headlines.
Occasionally, she asks me about problems she is having with her computer. She enjoys seeing her friends and their families on Facebook and checking her email.
The extra security codes her bank requires to access online banking are troublesome because she doesn't have a smartphone and doesn't text.
Both of us have long memories and we reminisce about past vacations. Her cousin, my godmother, lived in Manhattan and we often speak about our Big Apple adventures. Drinks at the Rainbow Room, window shopping at Sak's Fifth Avenue and Macy's, Broadway plays and Lincoln Centre concerts.
In 2020, we went to Cuba, and over the years we have travelled together to Great Britain, Europe, Bermuda and Jamaica.
In the past year, Mom's hearing has failed, so sometimes I must speak very loudly.
Mom enjoys talking about her childhood and teen years during The Depression and the Second World War.
She has told me the same stories, with the same enthusiasm, about dating my father, many times. I never remind her that I have heard the stories before.
She can recall things like the dress she wore to a specific Christmas party.
Or the time, she ruined a new dress by spilling nail polish on it.
I know my mom's favourite song, Claude Debussy's "Clair du lune." I doubt if my siblings who see her everyday know that.
When she was younger, my mom was invited to sing at concerts and weddings, thanks to her pretty voice. Her last performance was at my 50th birthday party.
My music-loving mom can brag she has seen Frank Sinatra, Tom Jones, Rod Stewart, Madonna, Elton John, the Moody Blues, and Ringo Starr in concert.
This past July, Mom and I went to the Foreigner concert in Windsor. I think, I know, she was the oldest person there. She said she had no trouble hearing the band.
We love movies, too, and talking about them. Thanks to the Turner Movie Channel and streaming services, we can watch old classics as well as the latest films. We prefer dramas over comedies. Her favourite is "Gone with the Wind."
Mom remembers the days before television when it was common to go to the movie theatre two or three times a week. And she still likes to go to the movies, most recently we went out to see "Downton Abbey."
Our conversations mean so much to us. I don't usually burden her with my problems but when I do, Mom always takes my side.
Although she does not always appreciate my silly sense of humour, in her eyes, I am perfect and can do no wrong. And she never complains about my cooking. Wow! It does not get better than that.
Senior seniors like Mom provide us with a great example of how to live long, happy and well.
Between 2016 and 2021, the proportion of Canadians reaching the age of 100 increased by 16 per cent.
Thanks to better health care and nutrition, the number of Baby Boomer centenarians, who were born in 1965, the last year of the post Second World War birth boom, is predicted to be 87,500 by 2065.
If you are turning 60 in 2026, you may have a lot of Christmases ahead.
Vicki Gilhula is a freelance writer. Prime is made possible by our Community Leaders Program.
