Life After 60

by+Zhou+Xiang+and+Xiao+Bian

Elderly Young Man

At the dawn of 1996， Wang Deshun unwrapped a new notebook to use as his diary. The coming year meant a great deal to him – he would turn 60， an age marking the beginning of twilight years in Chinese culture. On the first page of the notebook， Wang wrote a letter to “Mr. 1996”： “Actually， I dont expect you to come. Your arrival symbolizes my maturity and forecasts my senility. Luckily， my inner self is defying the aging process.” Wang had been living peacefully and affluently in Beijing for 11 years. The decade before 1996， he focused on performing pantomime and living sculpture， two things in which he took great pride. His good physique was a result of the hobbies as well as his tendency to work out in a gym.

In 2015， 20 years after Wang began defying the aging process， the 80-year-old suddenly became a sensation on the Chinese internet. On March 25， during China Fashion Week， he gave a guest performance for a fashion show. A photo of him topless in cotton-padded trousers went viral on the internet. His fitness， confidence， and personal style impressed many. Thousands looked up Wangs Weibo （Chinese version of Twitter） and praised him as an “elderly young man” and “icon of the era.”

Although he gained overnight fame on the internet， Wang still likes talking about pantomime and living sculpture. He understands that these art forms couldnt possibly bring him the fame that China Fashion Week did. “Times have changed，” he laments. As a trendsetter， Wang has always kept in touch with new things， feeling out and adapting to modern society. He learned to use WeChat， a popular free Chinese messaging app， to maintain his professional contacts， even if he spends more time than most finding the right buttons. He carefully reads his messages on Weibo and makes earnest replies. He dresses in fancy costumes for photo calls and learned to ride a motorcycle for a role in a movie. “My dad is no different from other grandpas when spending time with my daughter at home，”reveals Wangs daughter. “But he is much different when he goes out. My friends envy me for my young， cool father.”

Planning for Seniors

Twenty years ago， a life like Wangs was far from common in China. The World Health Organization defines the age of 60 as the boundary between the middle aged and the elderly. Traditionally， Chinese people believe that those over 60 have finished the majority of their life journey. And generally speaking， the Chinese elderly dont plan much for their retirement years.

Cheng Yin， a seasoned host for Beijing Peoples Broadcasting Station， has anchored the program “Friends of Senior Citizens” for six years. She has closely monitored seniors retirement plans for years. “Previously， about 80 percent of seniors didnt have any plans for life after retirement and lacked long-term prospects，” says Cheng. This overriding passive attitude shocked her. In China， men are eligible to retire at age 60， while women retire at “only” 55. Only a small propor- tion of senior citizens make detailed and long-term plans for their twilight years， and most do so only after encouragement from family and friends.

To help change the situation， Cheng uses her program to encourage elderly people to lead healthy and purposed lives. She has guided about a dozen seniors in making concrete and detailed one-year plans involving activities such as learning new songs， curing ailments， and learning to use computer. Participants were inspired and many made detailed plans for the future. One even published a book about health based on his plan.

The stories of Wang Deshun and Cheng Yin demonstrate that people can always find a life they want， no matter their age. Post-60 days are not doomed to tediousness， loneliness， or boredom. Through examples promoted by Wang and Cheng， many are noticing elderly Chinese lifestyles undergoing slow but remarkable changes.

Senior Society Challenges

Chinas implementation of reform and opening-up over the past three decades not only brought about a rapidly developing economy and increasingly rising living standards， but also a rapidly aging society. In late February 2013， the China Research Center on Aging released its first blue paper on development of the aging population. According to the report， in 2012， Chinas aging population had already reached 194 million， and the figure will increase at a rate of 8.6 million every year. In 2050， Chinas elderly population is expected to reach 450 million and account for one third of the countrys total population. Due to the decades-long family planning policy， economic growth and changing values， Chinas birthrate has been on the decline. At the same time， since Chinese peoples lifespan has greatly increased in recent years， the proportion of elderly shot up. In fact， China was already an aging society as early as 1999.

Facing the expansion of the elderly population， the Chinese government increased its investment in programs for seniors. With the development of the mechanisms， great numbers of elderly people have abandoned the traditional mode of depending on children in their later years. They are no longer content with a simple and quiet retirement. Three decades ago， taking care of grandchildren was a major“activity” for retirees. Seniors do like to lend a hand to their working-age children， but that lifestyle leaves few alternative activities for seniors.

The situation has changed considerably in recent days. More people seek an independent life after retirement. They participate in sports， sing in choirs， practice calligraphy， travel， and even launch businesses. Instead of leading the clichéd life of worrying about grown-up kids， Chinese seniors now tend to blaze their own trails. In-step with a fast-changing and colorful society， increasing numbers of elderly people are trying to seize the day. This huge demographic has special needs， including healthcare， safety， respect， inspiration and love. For government and society alike， meeting these needs requires careful management and planning. Myriad issues concerning Chinas veteran population have already inspired handfuls of profound questions.