No young man believes he shall ever die, observed William Hazlitt. Yet ageing remains a natural part of life, and it is precisely the impermanence of life that renders it so precious. Knowing that it is brief requires us to appreciate each moment of beauty and waste no opportunity for learning and love. The Art of Ageing has been written to help us achieve these ends. Some people may experience bad health, unhappiness and grief, but for many their later years can be amongst the happiest they have known, years that provide unequalled opportunities for creative growth enriched by mature relationships with children, grandchildren, spouse or partner and beloved friends. The shallowness of inexperience can be replaced by a depth of understanding and complexity of being; and restless speed with the serenity of untroubled leisure. Now there is time for experiment and creativity, time for exploring our different potentials, time to live in accordance with our dreams, time to be ourselves. The Art of Ageing gives advice on how to make the most of ageing, how we can celebrate its positive gifts and includes the stories of a variety of people who have enjoyed creative and productive lives well into their eighties and nineties.
