Work hard and live longer

“If you want to have long life, eat healthy food, stay away from alcohol, do a lot of physical work and have only one sexual partner.” These are the wise words of Mr Khaukanani Obed Lukhwa (86) of Mukula village, who described himself as a “young boy” whose age does not stop him from doing what he enjoys most – the art of farming.

Lukhwa, who owns a farm at his home village, does not have workers and he does everything on his own. “I wake up at 04:00 every day and walk to my nearby farm. I then walk back home at 10:00 to have some breakfast and go back to the farm again. At 13:00, I go back home for lunch and return to the farm at 14:00, until I call it a day at 17:00. I don’t even use a walking stick, because I’m still very strong on my own.”

He said he had started farming many years ago after he had retired as a bricklayer. “Farming is my passion and I will never stop until my last day on earth. Besides getting some cash by selling my products to the public, the daily activities on my farm keep me strong and healthy. I operate all the garden tools on my own and never need any assistance.”

Lukhwa added that one of the secrets of his long life included his hard work as a bricklayer many years ago. “I worked the whole day building houses, schools, churches and clinics. When I sit down doing nothing, I feel like there is something missing in my body. I seldom get sick, because my body is physically fit and healthy. I encourage other senior citizens to keep themselves busy to be healthy at all times.”

He said he enjoyed eating fruit and vegetables and he did not prefer meat. “I can rather go for fish, mopane worms or dried vegetables instead of meat. Alcohol is a taboo and I drink a lot of water daily. We can have a very healthy community if young people can emulate my life.”

Date:13 May 2018

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