Wisdom From the World's Oldest Man

Last week the world's oldest man, Walter Breunig, died at 114 years of age in Great Falls, Montana.

The world's oldest person is Besse Copper of Monroe, GA. She was born 26 days before Walter.

A lot of wisdom in here ... Amazing - he was 76 - already a pretty long life - when I was born.

His secret to a long life offers some pretty insightful tips:

— Embrace change, even when the change slaps you in the face.  ("Every change is good.")
— Eat two meals a day  ("That's all you need.")
— Work as long as you can  ("That money's going to come in handy.")
— Help others  ("The more you do for others, the better shape you're in.")

Then there's the hardest part. It's a lesson Breuning said he learned from his grandfather: Accept death.

"We're going to die. Some people are scared of dying. Never be afraid to die. Because you're born to die," he said.

Breuning died of natural causes in a Great Falls hospital where he had been a patient for much of April with an undisclosed illness.

This reminded me of a great poem I read in a book by Lou Holtz - "A Teen's Gameplan for Life"

The Dash
by Alton Maiden (A Notre Dame Football player)

I Have  seen death staring me with my own eyes in a way many cannot know.
I’ve seen death take others but still leave me here below.

I’ve heard many mother cries but death has refused to hear.
in my life I have seen many faces filled with many, many tears. 

After death has come and gone, a tombstone sits for many To see.
But it serves no more than a symbol of a person’s memory.

Under the person’s name it reads the date of birth— and the Date the person passed.
But the more I think about the tombstone the only Important thing is the dash.

Yes, I see the name of the person, but that I might forget.

I also read the date of birth and death, but even that may not stick.

But thinking about the person, I can’t help but think to Remember the dash.
Because it represents a person’s life and that will always last. 

So when you begin to charter your life, make sure you are on A positive path.
Because people may forget your birth and death, but they will
never forget your dash.