The Story of the '5 Ages' That Make Middle Age Fun | Isn't It Okay to Just Keep Your Heart Young?

The Story of the '5 Ages' That Make Middle Age Fun | Isn't It Okay to Just Keep Your Heart Young?

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There are actually quite a lot of ages.
The life clock isn't just about answering 'How old are you?' on your official family register.

The story of the '5 Ages' introduced by Ryogakucho of the Liberal Arts University was very interesting, so today I will interpret it in my own way.

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1. Chronological Age: The 'Number Age' Decided by the Government

First is the easiest to understand: 'Chronological Age'.
It is the so-called 'calendar age' that can be proven with a driver's license or My Number card.

But this can often be quite different from your true 'sense of age'.
After all, there are people who are 40 but have the 'physical strength of a 25-year-old,' and others who have the 'mental energy of a 70-year-old,' right?

You cannot measure the maturity of life by numbers alone.
If you think of it as 'being updated' rather than 'getting older = ending,' it makes you feel a little more at ease.

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2. Biological Age: The Age Your Body Tells You

Next is 'body age'.
It's that thing where they tell you at a health checkup, 'You're younger than your actual age!'

Exercise, sleep, and diet—the balance of these three is everything.
In other words, your future self will be completely different depending on whether you have a 'night of back-to-back ramen' or a 'morning of vegetables and a walk'.

As a reality of middle age, if you neglect this, you will fall apart.
But on the flip side, it is also the 'age where effort is most rewarded'.
It is a time when you can get a head start on your future health with just a little bit of awareness.

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3. Social Age: The Age Determined by Your Position

'Even though you're a department manager...' 'Since you're already a parent...'
This kind of 'social age' is also troublesome, isn't it?

For example, if you say in your 40s, 'I'm going to mix with the young people and start something new,' the people around you get strangely restless.
But looking at the speed of the times, the definition of 'social age' itself is already old.

Rather than dividing your career by age, it is more natural in this day and age to act based on 'what kind of role you want to have'.
In other words, rather than 'living like a department manager,' it's better to 'work like yourself'.

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4. Subjective Age: The Age of Your Mood

This is the most interesting one.
It's an age like the perceived temperature of your heart, asking, 'How old do you think you are?'

People who act with a '30-year-old mindset' even at 50 are truly young in both appearance and energy.
Conversely, people who say 'I'm already old' even at 30 make their lives look aged.

People get old through their 'assumptions'.
If you think, 'I can still do something,' the world expands.
If you think, 'I can't do it anymore,' the world shrinks.

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5. Mental Age: The Maturity of Your Heart

Finally, there is 'heart age'.
This is something that grows slowly with experience.

For example, being able to laugh off things that used to make you angry in the past, or being able to imagine the 'circumstances of others' that you couldn't see when you were young.
When you reach middle age, this finally starts to deepen.

'The power not to get angry,' 'the power to let go,' 'the power to say it's okay'—
When these increase, living becomes truly easier.
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Summary: Managing Your Age

Ryogakucho said, 'Let's manage our age.'

In other words, be aware of 'which age' you are being influenced by.
Don't be swayed by numbers, take care of your body, keep your heart young, and nurture your spirit.

I think people who have this balance are aging well.
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Even if the numbers grow old, your sensibilities can be nurtured.

This might be the secret to living the 100-year life 'just right'.