When you see Senator FLORENCE ITA GIWA,

the phrase ‘age is just a number’ springs to mind. I am first to admit you can’t cheat nature and defy the aging process but what resides within you is what determines whether you age gracefully or not as it reflects on the outside. Many a time, some women tend to ‘close the curtains’ or ‘throw in the towel’ when it comes to taking care of their looks. They feel that since they have accomplished everything thing on their bucket list, marriage, children and their careers, looking fit is the least of their problems. They embrace their evening by letting go and indulge in guilty pleasures. This should not be so because your evening is when you should really begin to enjoy the fruits of your labour. I’m a fine one to talk considering l have been fighting a losing battle the bulge! But the truth is, no matter what size you are, you should always put your best foot forward when it comes to dressing your size. Aunty Flo, as we all call her, is by no means a slim-framed woman but she looks fabulous in anything she adorns because she dresses appropriately and what makes her more interesting is how she is not afraid to embrace younger friends. She is versatile like that which makes her popular with people from all works of life in varying age brackets.

To still wear your heels, adorn your wigs, wear figure hugging clothes with a dash of makeup at 75 is proof that you are as young as you feel inside. Learning to embrace life with the right frame of mind, forgiving yourself for your shortcomings and those of others, is one way to live long and well, not comparing notes and highlighting inadequacies also helps. Learn to love yourself.

Whatever makes you happy as an individual should become paramount. As long as it does not hurt your fellow man, then feel free to embrace it. Always remember that it is not how long but how well.