About active ageing

My brother and I visited the Fujian Tulou (also called Earthen House) in southern Fujian Province, China, at the end of June. The tulou is an unusual type of Chinese rural dwelling. In 2008, UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) designated the Fujian Tulou as part of the cultural heritage of humankind. I had wanted to visit the place since I saw a commercial featuring a tulou a few years back.

There is an interesting story about the tulou. Reportedly, during the Reagan Administration, the CIA mistook them for nuclear devices and sent an undercover team, in the guise of a cultural tour, to check out the facts.

Tulou are mostly found in the southwestern part of rural Fujian. The area is hilly, full of terraced fields for growing tea and vegetables. Most of the people who live there seem to be engaged in farming or farm-related industries.

Well, this entry is not really about tulou, but about active ageing. One of the images that remains in my mind from my trip is seniors who were busy working in the fields or selling things on the road. They always had something to do. They didn’t seem to be worried or sad. They seemed contented and had a sense of purpose. It made me wonder whether city life has turned us into beings who are far too structured, where there is a time for everything, including retirement from work. There is no retirement in rural living. What better illustration could we have for active ageing than this?


For Reflections on Nursing Leadership (RNL), published by the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International.