Did you know that the oldest Nobel Laureate Prize winner was Leonid Hurwicz at the age of 90? Or that Dorothy Davenhill Hirsch broke a record when she visited the North Pole at the age of 89?  Every day, seniors are challenging the notion that life’s biggest accomplishments are reserved for the young, which gives us inspirational stories for senior citizens to feel empowered and encouraged.

From breaking records to award-winning achievements, older adults are proving that there is truth in the saying, “Age is just a number.” Whether you are practicing a lifelong hobby or learning something new, your later years can be the time in your life to make your dreams come true

One of the most popular series of all time was not published until the author was 62. J.R.R. Tolkien at the age of 45, published The Hobbit, which became an instant success. Tolkien spent the next 20 years working on the sequel series, The Lord of the Rings. In 1954 Tolkien released the first of the trilogy series that became global bestsellers and were eventually adapted into award-winning movies.

On October 29, 1998, John Glenn, at age 67, became the oldest person to travel to outer space. He was aboard the space shuttle Discovery for a research mission, and he participated in a series of tests on the aging process. It wasn’t John’s first time in outer space, he was the first American to orbit the Earth in 1962.

Not only does Harriette Thompson hold the record for the oldest woman to complete a marathon at the age of 92, but 2 years later she broke a new record by becoming the oldest woman to complete a half-marathon! Harriet didn’t start running until she was in her 50’s and didn’t participate in a marathon until she was 76, proving that it is never too late to try something new. As a two-time cancer survivor, Harriette motivated herself by running for a cause. Her efforts helped to raise over $100,000 for cancer research.

Anna Mary Robertson, known as Grandma Moses, didn’t try painting until her late 70’s. According to the National Museum of Women in the Arts, she spent her life as a farm wife and mother, selling homemade food to support her family. She drew inspiration from life on the farm and as a hobby, would work on needlework and quilts. When arthritis made it too difficult to continue with embroidery, Anna Mary decided to try painting her farm scenes instead. She was self-taught and used supplies from around the house. After a New York art collector stumbled upon her work, she gained massive popularity and her work was exhibited around the world.

In his book How We Lead Matters, author George Elliot said, “It is never too late to be what we might have been.” People around the world are reinventing themselves at age 50 and beyond, turning their seeds of ideas into a garden of dreams.

In the Book of Psalms, we read: Teach us to count our days aright, that we may gain wisdom of heart [Psalms 90:12]. In the New Testament, the Apostle James says: Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we shall go into such and such a town, spend a year there doing business, and make a profit” – you have no idea what your life will be like tomorrow. You are a puff of smoke that appears briefly and then disappears” [James 4:13-15].

It’s highly unlikely that you or I can expect to have the spectacular longevity of the patriarchs of the Old Testament. In today’s world a human’s maximum life span is about 120 years, and our average life expectancy is only 70–80 years—just as it was when the 90th Psalm was written 3,400 years ago! However, it is important to accept that there are no real limits to our progress, even in the second half of life.

When speaking with and about older Catholics, the church cannot act as if their lives only had a past, “a musty archive,” Pope Francis said. “No. The Lord also can and wants to write new pages with them, pages of holiness, service and prayer.” The elderly, Pope Francis said, “can be protagonists of evangelisation, privileged witnesses of God’s faithful love.”

You think God can’t use you – that you’re too old? Think again. Know this: God isn’t finished with you yet!We are each called to fulfil a purpose in life. And it doesn’t matter how old or how young you are. Never underestimate the potential hidden within you. Keep pushing the frontiers of the possible for “nothing is impossible to the one who believes.”  God believes in you; do you? It’s time to blaze!

Have a golden day and treasure life!