When recently, the Labour Party decided to pull me and some of the other old party stalwarts from under the wrap, where we were almost covered in moth balls, I was asked to represent the PL on two TV political programmes, one on Super One (Inkontri) and the other on TVM (BondiPlus).
It is amazing what impact the TV has on the Maltese. Whoever coined the phrase that television can make you or break you should be awarded the Noble Prize for Literature.
Many congratulated me on my performance. Some were genuine. Others smacked of hypocrisy.
But what flattered me most was that almost all those who phoned me, sent me e-mails or stopped me in the street, remarked that I looked good. That I looked healthy. That I did not look my age. Of course, not all that glitters is gold. I have my share of medical problems. The colours of the pills I take each morning would shame a rainbow.
A friend of mine from the UK, a journalist and writer, sent me the 10 commandments for staying young. Given that, sometimes, my writings would probably give a heart attack to some readers, I would like to perform a good deed and share these 10 commandments with them.
Here they are:
1. Throw out non-essential numbers. These include age, weight and height. Let the doctors worry about them. That is why you pay them.
2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.
3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever, even ham radio. Never let the brain idle. An idle mind is the devil's workshop. And the devil's family name is Alzheimer's.
4. Enjoy the simple things.
5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.
6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve and move on. The only person who is with us throughout our entire life is ourselves. Be alive while you are alive.
7. Surround yourself with what you love, whether it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.
8. Cherish your health. If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.
9. Don't take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county; to a foreign country but not to where the guilt is.
10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.
And always remember: Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by the moments that take our breath away.