This morning my 93-year old mother told me that she is the only survivor among her generation of in-laws, 8 of them in total, my parents-in-law, my first sister’s parents-in-law, my youngest sister’s parents-in-law and my parents. This is true.
To encourage her to keep doing the right things for herself, I told her of two keys to her longevity: healthy lifestyle and keeping high her spirits.
She said, there’s no one size fits all recipe for keeping one’s spirits high and getting good moods. Each one has his own unique way. Some people get high from their careers pursuit, some in having good food, or in traveling, some in creative works, while others in serving the society. That’s why there’s a Chinese saying, 助人为乐（Zhù-rén wéi lè), meaning: get pleasure from helping others, get Helper’s high.
What surprises me is the fact that my mother totally embraces the belief in diversity even though she has never been educated in a place that advocates diversity.
Perhaps the third key to longevity is wisdom, the one that recognizes, accepts and respects diversity in life or perhaps helper’s high.