My Future Older Self: My Legacy

My Future Self

The more time that passes, the more meaning I find behind my daily goings. My body is going to deteriorate at some point, regardless of how healthy I am, my soul however, I can build even if my body is breaking down. I look at life as a continuous journey, not the pursuit of any one specific destination. Still, there are specific qualities I want to build upon leading into the later part of my life. Regardless of my personal traits or assets, the meaning of life for me, is to leave a legacy of healthy and valuable relationships.
My central source of meaning will be entrusted in whether or not I leave behind a legacy of healthy and valuable relationships. I will not be satisfied unless I help my family and peers pursue physical and financial wellness.. Through my family life and work life, I hope to help people in a fashion that propels them to pay forward their efforts mentally and physically. I will always prioritize my family relationships, however, it is important for me to help as many people as possible during my lifetime. It is essential for me watch my loved ones transition into different roles in their lives through their rites of passage. I look forward to these moments as I will quickly transcend into a state of reflection. I have to be proactive and protect these moments, by being simultaneously being proactive about my physical and financial wellness. My legacy will include me doing the same for my family and friends.
I will utilize cryptocurrency as a medium to give away all my wealth before I pass away. I want to give free cryptocurrency to my family, friends, schools, and health intervention programs. According to oxford dictionary.com, cryptocurrency is “A digital currency in which encryption techniques are used to regulate the generation of units of currency and verify the transfer of funds, operating independently of a central bank.”(Oxford 1). Encrypted currency helps senior citizens, and everyone protect their money from fraud, regulation, and monitoring. Providing myself and fellow senior citizens with the ability to utilize encrypted currency will make it easier for seniors to be eligible for government assistance. Seniors can become eligible through a process called Medicaid spend down. According to Moody & Sasser, Medicaid spend down, is “the requirement that people divest themselves of assets down to a minimal level in order to qualify for Medicaid coverage of nursing home care”(Moody & Sasser 504). Hiding or liquidating assets is a common action of senior citizens, protecting their money from government monitoring will help senior-citizens be eligible for resources; without them having to squander the only resources they have left. Paul Ryan (speaker of the United States House of Representatives) speaks on this subject in the following quote, “Obamacare rewrote Medicare... so if you're going to repeal and replace Obamacare, you have to address those issues as well... What people don't realize is that Medicare is going broke, that Medicare is going to have price controls... So you have to deal with those issues if you're going to repeal and replace Obamacare.”(Ryan 1). Leaving cryptocurrency behind to my legacy of peers, will enable them to be resistant to Medicare controlling their finances. Essentially, I can help people bank themselves without the need for an actual bank account. The vision for this type of economy is already in the works. Within The Virtual Currency and Financial Blockchain Technology: Current Trends in Digital Finance, Otilia Monta explains where currency is headed with the following passage, “The future of value is digital. Benefits of digital assets include the reduction of transactional frictions, the ability to transact across borders, the elimination of counterparty risk assessment, regulatory and monetary policy freedom, and access to money for the “unbanked,” user anonymity and ledger transparency. Given the long list of benefits as well as the fact that a digital infrastructure is available to most of the modern world, there is a present and growing need for a digital medium of exchange”(Monta 13). Medicare/Medicaid qualifications have helped with the growth of encrypted digital currency. Encrypted and hidden currency platforms will protect the final assets of senior citizens.
Financial wellness is minimal to me and my peers without leaving behind a legacy of physically active people. I want to highlight the importance of strength and resistance training to prevent bone and joint degeneration. Exercise can help seniors with osteoporosis, arthritis, and other facets of life. The following article in jointhealth.org explains such positives with the following passage The research literature on exercise is growing, and it is now generally accepted that there are many benefits of exercise for arthritis and osteoporosis. General benefits of exercise include improved heart and lung function, weight control, and improvement of self-esteem and self-confidence”(Jointhealth 1). Essentially, exercise can help everyone in my life with bone and joint issues, while also helping with their weight and mental wellness. I want to share this with my grandchildren and peers, regardless of their age, as these positive aspects are applicable to everyone. Following all workouts will be a stretching routine complimented by a yoga routine. I want to push myself and my peers to engage in stretching and yoga. This will prevent arthritis and injury while also making it easier to sleep at night. Once completed with that, I will sweat the toxins out of my body through the use of both a sauna and steamroom. The positive physical aspects of these rituals will ideally inspire others to do the same.
Physical wellness and financial wellness are not sustainable without proper nutrition. Proper nutrition will help my body repair and maintain, especially when complemented with proper meals. Financial wellness will not be sustainable when medical bills for cardiovascular disease or diabetes begin to pile up. A nutrient-dense diet, filled with proteins and antioxidants, will help my body repair while fighting diseases at the same time. Protein will be essential for my muscles to maintain strength. This will keep my bones from holding any unnecessary body weight. Maintaining my muscles will help my body avoid unnecessary pressure on not only my bones, but on my joints as well.
Antioxidants are also necessary to incorporate into my diet for an arsenal of reasons. According to Moody & Sasser, antioxidants are, “a substance that destroys free radicals, thereby preventing damage to cell structures. Considering our body contains so many cells, preventing damage to these structures becomes paramount. The notion that antioxidants are so beneficial, is confirmed within the Aging:Concepts and Controversies. Moody & Sasser as the authors explain the free-radical theory of aging. According to Moody & Sasser, the free radical theory of aging, “the idea that free radicals (unstable and highly reactive organic molecules) create damage that gives rise to symptoms we recognize as aging” (Moody & Sasser 1). Essentially, we can delay the progression of aging by incorporating antioxidants in my diet. I learned this from my nana and I hope people learn the same from my legacy. Friends and family close to me will have countless opportunities to watch me indulge in bananas, chia seeds, and red wine. Seeing me age as fine as the wine should inspire people to pursue proper nutrition.
Diet, exercise, and financial wellness can minimize the financial burden of accelerated diseases that come with late-age. The accelerated disease-risks are explained within Aging: Concepts and Controversies, by Moody & Sasser, with the following passage, “Many physical changes of old age are in the wear-and-tear category and include the decalcification of bones, uric acid encrustation in cartilage of joints, and cholesterol accumulation in blood vessels.”(Moody & Sasser 144). Essentially, I have to especially protect my bones, joints, heart and blood profile. I will do this to maintain physical wellness but also to prevent the excess costs of such conditions. Poor health conditions can create a financial burdens that can threaten every asset a person owns. These costs are described as out-of-pocket medical expenses. Netquote.com describes detrimental out-of-pocket medical expenses in the following passage, “More than two-thirds of seniors age 65 and over who file for bankruptcy attribute their financial situations to health problems, according to an August 2010 report by University of Michigan Law School professor John Pottow. For 32.6 percent of those older Americans, medical bills were cited as the cause of their bankruptcies.”(Netquote 1). Medical bills are forcing millions of senior citizens to go bankrupt against their will. I will do everything I can to create a legacy that protects people from this fate.
My daily routine will revolve around building my legacy of physical and financial wellness. I picture myself waking up every morning and working out at 6 AM. After my 2 hour workout routine I will indulge in a nutritious and warm breakfast. After working out and eating, my body will be in full swing. That will be the time for me to check my email and indulge in current events before getting ready for the daily work. I do not have one specific job set for late- age. I will volunteer or work a purposeful job Monday-Friday 10-5. I will have checked the cryptocurrency exchanges each morning (similar to that of the New York Stock Exchange). I will have worked enough currency at that point to have earned the 7 hour work day as opposed to 8. My days away from the rat race will be spent with two of the best women in the word, mother nature and my beautiful will. I will visit nature as soon as I am home from work via a walk through the park or jog around the neighborhood. Together, my beautiful wife and I will go on a long walk on the beach that has been established as ritual. We will sometimes walk our Portuguese Water Dog, his name will be baxter. Following that winding down period, my best nights will be spent cooking an italian dinner with the love of my life, as music plays in the background. Music is needed for me to age happily. I plan to explore various art forms. I will visit plays, musicals, concerts and art galleries. Entertainment will not interfere with my legacy of helping others, still, I will not stop myself from enjoying certain things.
I plan on following professional sports as means of entertained for a very long time. I will always be entertained by sports, especially the more competitive those sports are. I imagine I will compete in tennis, shuffleboard, chess and several card games. My grandfather watched New York Yankees games until the day he died, I envision myself doing the same thing. My father and brother are the same way. Sports have always been a positive constant in my life, teaching life lessons in a healthy way. Sports creates a platform for failure to propel someone forward. A single match, can symbolize a daily struggle for an aging male. The rules, officials, and opposition, might be stacked against you, but if you persevere, you can fight to see another day, and sometimes even fight to see victory. I hope to make such lessons applicable to both physical wellness and financial wellness. I do not want to compromise or negotiate this schedule as I am no use to others unless I am happy.
Neither success or failure are permanent states of life. I plan to spend the rest of my life applying my knowledge to Public Health causes. Towards the later part of my life I will sacrifice some time in order to invest in learning about religion, spiritually and the afterlife. In order to have a better understand of where I am going, I feel it is necessary to better understand where I came from. I am open to studying most any religion or belief system. I want to study Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity, other religions and the history that affected them. I consider the religious studies chapter of my life as a personal venture, something I am mainly doing for myself. I want society to be prepared to recieve the healthy torch from me; lighting the fire to continue my movement. My personal safety net of complete health and financial wellness (cryptocurrency) will protect me for years to come and I plan on enabling countless people to do the same.
My nephew is 2 years old and my niece is 6 months old. I aspire to be a role model to them while inspiring them to help people in the same ways I will have. My future self will be very well rounded, pursuing physical wellness, financial wellness. When I can give my undivided attention, I will also focus on spiritual wellness. My safety-net will be a model for all people to age with. My life will not be complete unless I leave behind a legacy of people who are building safety-nets for one another.
Entering late-age can be be scary for countless people, I am prepared to create a legacy that changes that perception. Public policy does not enable the average senior-citizen to make healthy behavior choices. The government is not there to make sure we keep our physical wellness and financial wellness throughout life. We have to do that for ourselves and for each other. Life takes on much more meaning to me when my actions are geared toward helping others. Being an individual, I can only experience and feel so much. Helping people in the community can reach a greater audience, while those individuals can touch an audience of the same size. I will always give back and I know such actions are going to pay off. The positive aspects of volunteering as a senior citizen are described in the following passage by Sarah Graham, “Numerous benefits from volunteering have been identified within literature. While the specific causes of these benefits are difficult to determine, it is evident that volunteer activity is a contributor. The concept of health status and volunteering can be viewed from a cause or an effect premise. As previously mentioned, some state that good health predicts volunteering, while others argue that volunteering improves health. Might both be true?”(Graham 1). Both are true and my legacy will be true. I will help other people while indirectly helping myself live up to the same standard I hold people to.
I want to serve as a candle in the dark for people that remember me, whether I am alive or dead. Louis Aragon once beautifully stated, “Light is meaningful only in relation to darkness, and truth presupposes error. It is these mingled opposites which people our life, which make it pungent, intoxicating. We only exist in terms of this conflict, in the zone where black and white clash.” (Aragon 1) Systematic limits hold senior citizens back from living life to the fullest. I will use my legacy to inspire, educate, and enable people to see the dark limits set by the world. Physical wellness and health literacy combined with financial wellness and financial literacy will be a light that reveals the true potential of someone's life. A multi-faceted approach to life will be displayed in my daily goings as I highlight nutrition, exercise and how to create an encrypted economic safety net. I will be able to fulfill my legacy by helping others adopt the same multi-faceted approach to aging. I will not become distracted by the many mediums of entertainment in my life. I will live my full potential by leaving behind a legacy of meaningful and valuable relationships; relationships with people who know how to live and teach the legacy.

Works Cited

Diet, Nutrition and Exercise for People with Arthritis and Osteoporosis « JointHealth™ Monthly | Changing Arthritis, jointhealth.org/programs-jhmonthly-view.cfm?id=53.

NetQuote, www.netquote.com/health-insurance/news/medical-bankruptcies.

Moody, Harry R., and Jennifer R. Sasser. Aging: Concepts and Controversies. Sage Publications, Inc., 2018.