ON TARGET
The joys of being an elderly dad
By Ramon TulfoPhilippine Daily Inquirer
To men in their late 50’s or early 60’s who have fathered children: You are lucky!
Elderly men who have toddlers for sons or daughters live longer than their counterparts who are content to be grandfathers, based on my observations.
There’s something about older men who sire sons or daughters young enough to be their grandchildren: They appear to be full of zest, vitality and optimism usually found in much younger men.
In other words, elderly men who are fathers when they should be grandfathers have the same life expectancy as younger men.
Cheers!
* * *
A billionaire businessman, who is a former ambassador, has a secret to longevity he shares with friends about to retire from their careers.
“You want to live up a ripe old age? Have another child,” he once told a 55-year-old police officer who was nearing the retirement age of 56 for policemen.
The officer followed his advice and is still very athletic at 78, even though he has long retired from the service.
He has a 21-year-old son with whom he plays badminton on weekends.
And how old is the billionaire-former ambassador?
He’s also 78 and—you guessed right— also an elderly dad.
Many years ago, I asked the businessman, who he favored more, his five-year-old son or his grandson of the same age?
“My son, of course,” was his quick reply.
Offspring are direct descendants of their parents, while the relationship between a grandparent and his/her children’s offspring is indirect, he added.
I agree, but don’t ask me why.
* * *
Grandparents who dote on their grandchildren are trying to make up for the lack of time they spent with their children who are now parents themselves.
Grandparents, especially those who are already retired, have all the time with their grandchildren whose parents are now working themselves to the bone.
The parents will someday become grandparents and will shower the same love and affection to the children of their offspring.
That’s life as we know it.
* * *
What has happened to the kidnapping case involving Noriyo Ohara, a Japanese woman, where the suspects are agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI)?
A three-member probe panel created by Justice Secretary Leila de Lima found NBI Director Magtanggol Gatdula, who has since resigned, liable, along with several of his subordinates.
But the findings of the probe panel have not been translated into criminal cases filed against those found liable.
One of the suspects, Mario Garcia, erstwhile chief of the NBI detention section, has not even been suspended.
Noriyo’s luggage containing valuables and important papers that Garcia allegedly took from the Japanese has not been returned.
Why is the head of the probe panel, Justice Undersecretary Francisco Baraan III, vacillating in filing criminal cases against those whom the panel found liable for the kidnapping?
Has Baraan lost his nerve?
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Tags: Father’s Day , featured column , Kidnapping , Metro , NBI , Noriyo Ohara
