Agewell: Giving and Living

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By Mike Milstein

“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.”
Winston Churchill

Jan Boyle’s life is varied and giving. Born in South Canterbury, she spent much of her life in the Rotorua district. She has been a physiotherapist, a trainer for people in various community groups including the development of a program for the Rotorua Citizens Advisory Bureau, and also as a marriage guidance counsellor. Training for the counsellor role included some hairy moments.  “I had to look at who I was, what I was about, and what my attitudes were like.” When husband Bob obtained a forestry position in Zimbabwe through Volunteer Service Abroad, Jan practiced what Churchill preached. For the 2.5 years they were there, she was a community development worker with Mozambican women in a refugee camp and with rural Zimbabwean people.

Since coming to Nelson ten years ago she has been involved with Habitat for Humanity, sung in several choirs, and has also explored various artistic interests. Through her Habitat work she has had “contact with some really nice folks. It’s like Maslow’s hierarchy: if you have a stable base you can flourish.”

“There are things I’d like to do before I die, like make more visits overseas. But I’m also aware of global warming and diminishing oil reserves. We’ll need to practice sustainable living, grow vegetables, know more about nutrition and food and how we might operate as a small community. We’ve been so greedy over the past decades. We need to get away from our focus on individuality and think more as a community.”

Jan stays active through her volunteer work. She is also a member of a book group and gets up early for morning walks. During the last three years she has also been exercising at a local gym. “I like to keep my body and brain active. I’ve done this throughout my life. I had a physical deformity, spinabifida. But I got past that by doing things like being in a school netball team when I was young.”

“What matters most to me now is my energy level, both physically and mentally. I’m interested in things going on politically or in the community and, of course my friends and family. We have three children and four grandchildren, all living overseas.”

“I’ve had my challenges, including cancer, which has made me think quite hard about living and dying. I’ve also had lots of support from family. My mother, grandmother, and aunts were interested in keeping in good health. I’ve been lucky in that regard.”

Jan’s advice to others is to ‘live life to the full, but remember that you are not just part of your family, but also part of the community. We need to learn to live cooperatively together.” 

Note: This article, which was published in The Leader on November 13, 2008, summarizes an interview aired on Nelson’s Fresh FM that was conducted by Annie Henry for the Conscious Ageing Network and sponsored by Age Concern, Nelson. If you want to share your thoughts with CAN, send an email to agewell@ihug.co.nz .

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