Young @ Heart with Time to Change

When I am old and close to death, I want to die having lived a full life, still active in the things that bring me excitement, passion and inspiration for life.

Last night, I watched a documentary about a chorus of older people in their 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s singing contemporary songs by the likes of the Clash, Coldplay, James Brown, Ramones, and Sonic Youth. Living up their name, Young @ Heart, it made me cry at several moments to watch a group of people learning and singing difficult songs, despite losing friends, fighting illness and plaguing moments of the senior kind.

The passion and zeal for life that those men and women had, put to shame most people that I know, including myself, and it was a wonderful showcase of a beautiful part of the human spirit that perseveres, regardless of pain and hardships.

The most iconic, beautiful and heart-wrenching performance was a man singing “Fix You” by Coldplay. Originally meant to be a duet with his good friend, who passed away before the performance, the man showed me a picture of remembrance, respect and love, by singing the song with every ounce of energy that he could muster up, infusing the song’s meaning with his story. An important detail that added to the performance, was that the man himself was given two years to live, and was four months past the deadline. He had an oxygen tube up his nose, could barely stand, and at several moments in the film, he too was close to death.

Another lady was 92 years old, feisty, and full of life. In a way, she reminded me of my own grandmother, willing to say whatever is on her mind, not ashamed, not worried what people will think. As she sang “I Wanna Be Sedated” by the Ramones and “Schizophrenia” by Sonic Youth, I felt happy and joyful, not because old people were singing punk rock songs, but because she was 92 years old, active, alive and doing things that she probably never thought she would be doing at her age. She passed away after the film was made, but she was truly someone that loved life and wanted it known that others should live life with that same amount of passion.

It is important for me to take time and really reflect about my life and to make sure that I am living a passionate life. Encouraging others by allowing them to witness my actions, words, examples and relationships. That alone paints an important image of what it means to be young at heart.