Home
>
Positive Attitude Tips
>
The Ultimate In Positive Thinking?

The Ultimate In Positive Thinking?

I will never forget an evening in 2003, when I met an amazing gentleman. I had, for several weeks, had a problem with my foot and ankle, having great trouble walking because of the pain. It was a bit swollen, and I thought it was an injury of some sort, although I could not recall how it had happened.

The doctor at the local hospital did not examine it. She looked at my age on the notes, glanced down towards my foot, and said: "Oh, that's gout. It comes with your age." As I was only 53, and feeling quite healthy, I was not impressed. I never went back; I knew for sure it was nothing arthritic. I had long experience of arthritic pain in my younger days. This was not right; I was convinced it was an injury, but was baffled.

I decided just to rest it as much as I could for a few days, and it did show some sign of easing, but not a lot. I had started to fathom out how it may have happened. I lived then, and now, in Palawan, a beautiful province of the Philippines, something of a tropical paradise. Then, I still slept with the air conditioning on, albeit down low. More often than not, my feet would become uncovered during the night, and they were right under the air conditioning unit. So, I was waking with cold feet every morning.

Then came that evening I will not forget. A friend had told me she knew of a herbalist who people turned to when conventional western medicine had failed. That evening, she brought him to our apartment. We all sat around and there was polite chatter, with the gentleman sitting opposite me. As he came in, and then sat down, I had admired his agility and remarkably healthy appearance.

I noticed that he was observing my foot; and I had been observing him, too. I thought to myself that he was probably about 65, but as he was so healthy, only looked about 58. He had a young face, and good skin. My friend looked over with a big smile.

"Roy, Mr ??.. is 100 years old."

I was shocked, and aghast. I think he is used to that reaction.

"What?......Really?"

My friend laughed: "Yes, 100 years old. And he has 45 children from 4 wives."

I observed him from a different viewpoint now, and with disbelief. I was too polite to ask at what stages each of his wives died, but he had outlived them all. All his children had been successful one way or another, and he was a proud and happy man.

What was his secret? He was a man of the forest. Palawan is still blessed with historic rainforest, which hide many secrets in and below its trees. It was the trees of the forest that he used to treat people, and had achieved some wonderful results over the years. He was too modest to have told me that, it was my friend who told me of his successes. He shrugged if someone asked his secrets about his being 100 years old, and appearing so healthy and young. His answer was a fairly short one:

"I eat only good healthy food. I have never drunk alcohol. I have had a happy life. I pray every day, and believe in God."

There was one more reason he gave for his longevity: "I always wanted to live to be very old. I always saw it that way. Every day I imagined myself over 100."

Now, those may not be his exact words, as my friend translated for me as he spoke. But one thing I do know, he spoke with great sincerity, calmness and a subdued authority. He was the epitome of confidence. I was in awe at this small, lithe, 100 year old Superman.

My ankle and foot? Eventually he sprung out of his chair, and examined my foot.

"No arthritis," he said, and I did understand that as he spoke. Then my friend had to translate. He had observed, I walked on cold tiles. He said I would go from the outside, where it was hot, and come in and immediately walk on cold tiles. The blood was no longer reaching my feet properly.

That reminded me of what I had been thinking about the air conditioning while I slept. I explained, and he nodded knowingly. Each morning I would get out of bed and immediately do over 100 push ups. While the exercise is mostly on the arms, the tendons on the ankles get stretched with each push. Cold tendons being stretched over 100 times? Every morning. For months. That was it; that was probably the cause of the swollen ankle.

He said not to worry, it could be cured in 3 days of treatment. He had to travel down to the south of Palawan, and go into the forest in search of the barks and leaves he needed. It was the rainy season, and he was gone a week. I was still struggling to get walking when he returned, but it was only 2 days to go until I was due to fly to Cebu, so no time for the 3 days of treatment.

I need not have been concerned. He came back twice to apply a hot compress, steaming with the magic ingredients of the rain forest. Then, I had to get my flight. "Don't worry," he said, that should be fine. He was right; apart from an occasional twinge while in Cebu, it was fine, even as I walked around.

All he asked in return was the payment of his travel down to southern Palawan and back, as it was a journey he had not planned to make. He gave his time, knowledge and attention for free.

My ankle, though, was not why I remember that 100 year old gentleman. To me, his was the ultimate example of positive thinking. He always told himself he would live to be 100, and he did.

Ever since then, I have had a plan for my 100th birthday. It is a day I think of a lot. My guest of honour that day will be, if I can track him down, that gentleman of the forest. He will be 147 then, and with the way he was looking at 100, he will still be around, surprising people as much as ever.

This positive thinking article was written by Roy Thomsitt, owner of the Routes To Self Improvement website.

cleaning team near Winnetka ..

In The News:

Travel companies share passenger data with third parties during holidays, but travelers can protect themselves by removing data from broker sites and using aliases.

Xpeng's humanoid robot moves so realistically that crowds believed it was fake, marking a major advancement in robotics technology ahead of 2026 commercial launch.

Researchers discover phishing scam using invisible characters to evade email security, with protection tips including password managers and two-factor authentication.

iPhone and Android users can reduce battery drain and data usage by restricting Background App Refresh to Wi-Fi connections instead of mobile networks.

Scammers nearly stole an Apple account by exploiting the support system with authentic-looking tickets and phone calls, users can protect themselves with safety steps.

FoloToy restored sales of its AI teddy bear Kumma after a weeklong suspension following safety group findings of risky and inappropriate responses to children.

Threat intelligence firm Synthient uncovers one of the largest password exposures ever, prompting immediate security recommendations.

Viral video shared by Elon Musk shows Tesla's Optimus humanoid robots performing tasks from cooking to construction, garnering over 58.5 million views on social media.

Chinese hackers used Anthropic's Claude AI to launch autonomous cyberattacks on 30 organizations worldwide, marking a major shift in cybersecurity threats.

Apple's new Sleep Score feature gives you a rating for your nightly rest quality. Learn how to set it up on your Apple Watch and iPhone today.

Essential phone settings to enable before losing your device, including Find My network, location services and security features for iPhone and Android.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

Cybersecurity research shows weak passwords remain a major threat, with simple patterns and number sequences putting millions of accounts at risk.

New Android malware BankBot YNRK silences phones, steals banking data and drains crypto wallets automatically. Learn how this advanced threat works.

FDA approves first human trial for Paradromics' brain-computer interface that could restore speech for paralyzed patients through neural technology.

New phishing platform QRR targets Microsoft 365 users across 1,000 domains in 90 countries. Learn how to spot fake login pages and protect your accounts.

OpenTable now uses AI to track your dining habits and share insights with restaurants. Learn what data they collect and how to protect your privacy.

Google's discontinued Nest thermostats still secretly upload home data to company servers despite losing smart features, raising serious privacy concerns.

New Android malware NGate steals NFC payment codes in real-time, allowing criminals to withdraw cash from ATMs without your card. Learn protection tips.

DoorDash confirms data breach exposing customer names, emails, addresses after social engineering attack. Learn how to protect yourself from scams.

Concerned about Google's AI scanning your Gmail? Learn how to disable Gemini features that access your emails, Drive files and Chat messages for privacy.

Google warns Android users about dangerous fake VPN apps hiding malware that steals passwords, banking details and personal data from phones and tablets.

Apple's digital passport feature lets iPhone users breeze through TSA checkpoints this holiday season using Digital ID technology at 250+ airports.

A new phishing scam targets family photos with fake "Cloud Storage Full" alerts. Criminals steal credit card information through fake sites. Learn protection tips.

South Korean scientists create ultra-thin fabric muscles that turn clothes into robotic assistants, lifting 33 pounds while weighing under half an ounce.

The Ultimate In Positive Thinking?

Positive Attitude Tips