“Journalists can do much more with their lives after 60, following the will of God”
IT’S 7.30, and the newly wakened Metro Manila sun has just caressed the high-rise structures of this fumes-filled rising cosmopolis of 13 million, parts of which are impotently submerged during severe typhoons.
Some 18 years back, Emil P. Jurado, still active writing his weekly column in Manila Standard he helped found 38 years ago, started to feel old with four score beneath his belt and realized – Santa Banana, to borrow his repetitive phrase – he could no longer be active as he was.
The Abra-born child, who eventually became a newshound and lawyer, had just washed up, got dressed, prayed the rosary and read all the broadsheets he had access to.
On Sept. 15, he will be 98, his Virgoan personality traits still gleaming: being diligent, practical, analytical, and meticulous, possessing a strong desire for order and perfection.
Born in the Year of the Rabbit, Jurado – Emil to colleagues – appears to be gentle, kind, elegant, and peaceful, often avoiding conflict to maintain harmony.
The alumnus of Ateneo de Manila and the Philippine Law School used to be active with the Manila Overseas Press Club and 365 Club – the association where members talked mostly of politics and business – but the global health emergency in 2020 took its toll on him, changed his lifestyle and, by his admission, made “me age faster.”
Jurado, arguably the oldest working journalist who had alternately pounded the beat in his younger years to editing reporters’ copies then become chairman emeritus of the Manila Standard, does not drink alcohol or wine, just eight glasses of water and a half-glass or regular coke every lunch and dinner.
As a journalist for over seven decades he has never experienced any serious health issues and has covered 13 Philippine presidents, from Manuel Roxas in the 1940s to incumbent Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
In a recent interchange with us, his fellow northerner, we discovered some stones from this father of four, grandfather of five and great grandfather of two.
GG: Your thoughts on people who still work even when they are already seniors?
EPJ: Journalists never retire. Reason why I still write my column. Other people retire at 60, the mandatory retirement age for some companies/institutions, but I believe they can still do much more with their lives, following Go’s will.
GG: What do you do now? How long have you been married?
EPJ: My days now are peaceful, slow and quiet, compared to my younger years on the typewriter when I covered the beat, rising to an editor’s post.
About three times a week, I lunch with the family or with friends. In the late afternoon I watch the news on TV and after dinner I watch a movie on Netflix, Disney+, Prime Video on my Smart TV.
Sometimes I watch a DVD (digital video disc) from my big collection – but never forgetting to take my maintenance meds for heart, blood pressure, cholesterol, and brain health as well as asthma.
My wife of 70 years Trinidad (nee Kapunan Capistrano), five years my junior, is more active than I am and “still enjoys shopping at her favorite stores and always has a lunch date with friends at least 2-3 times a week”
GG: How do you handle physical and psychological stress?
EPJ: I do not let stress bother me. Faced with a difficulty, I pray and I ask the Lord to help me, leaving everything to His Will.
GG: What time do you retire to bed? Wake up and begin your day? Has there been a change in your meals when you were still below 60 to the time you walked through the seniors door?
EPJ: I usually go to bed at about 10:30 pm, after watching a movie on Netflix, Prime Video, Google Movies or a DVD. I no longer accept dinner invitations, as being out at night is not good for my health.
I wake up daily at exactly 7:30 am. My caregiver helps me wash up and get dressed. Then I pray my rosary and other novena prayers. After that I read all the daily newspapers.
Now, I usually take lighter meals, but I still can eat pork and beef. In my earlier years, I enjoyed heavy, hearty meals like American steaks (my favorite) Spanish food, Thai food, Japanese food, Chinese food and the occasional buffet.
I can still eat those, but not heartily, as before. I still enjoy my favorite Peking Duck and the rib-eye misono steak at Kimpura.
GG: At what age did you start feeling old, and how do you define old age?
EPJ: I started feeling old at age 80. Old age for me came when I could no longer be as active as I was.
Before I became “old,” my wife and I would travel to foreign countries at least every three months. We started feeling “old” when we could no longer travel without bringing a son or daughter to accompany us to help us ( with our luggage, checking in and carrying our shopping bags).
When I turned 85, I hesitated to travel far. My wife and I were content with Hong Kong, Singapore and Bangkok. Then when I started needing a “walker” when I reached my 90s I did not want to travel abroad anymore.
Local road trips were okay for me. But when I turned 95, I did not want to go on any road trips at all.
GG: Your secret to aging with a healthy attitude?
EPJ: No secret at all. I just do what I think I can at my age. I do not try to do things I can no longer do. Just want to maintain my health.
GG: Do you often or sometimes, or always, look back to your roots?
EPJ: Quite often. When you reach my age, you cannot help but think of how it all began. I can’t help but think of my roots. I was born in Dolores, Abra, although my roots, the Jurados, come from Magsingal, Ilocos Sur.
I had made several trips to Magsingal and Ilocos Sur in the past, I have been wishing to go back to visit Ilocos again, but at my age it would be difficult to make the trip. I can no longer go either to the place where I was born because going back to Abra now would be very difficult.
GG: What are your thoughts as you approach your 98 legend?
EPJ: I am thankful to God I have lived this long and still have my wife, the love of my life, here beside me. I wished for that in my younger days.
GG: Lessons in life you would like the younger generations to emulate:
EPJ: To have a strong faith in God. To trust in Him in all things. There is no substitute for prayers and to submit oneself to God’s will.
