Arthur Walters Jr. was born all the way back in 1919 and just recently celebrated his 104th birthday.
For reference on how long 104 years ago really is, movies were still silent, the most popular car was the Model T, Woodrow Wilson was the President of the United States, and the world’s first cell phone was still 54 years away.
To say the least. Arthur Walters Jr. has seen a lot in his long life, and he’s still as happy as ever at 104 years of age. A recent news story on Walters saw him give the secret to his longevity, as well as brag that he’s made it this long without taking any sort of medication.
If I live long enough to even see 100, I would be pretty cool with that, but Arthur is setting the bar pretty high with his attitude, sense of humor, and joy for life, and he passed the century mark four years ago.
Walters Jr. served in the Air Force, getting his pilot’s license and enlisting into the military when he was only 22 years old. Arthur served during World War II in the 96th bomb group, and is now the only surviving member of the squadron he served with.
There’s no telling how many stories and how much wisdom the World War II veteran could share, and his sharp mind and wit provided some incredible sound bites from his interview with WJLA Fox 12 in Oregon.
The feel good news story opens up with a little bit of information on Walters Jr., then cuts to a legendary quote from the veteran himself:
“People always ask, ‘What do you attribute it to?’ And I always say I have two good friends: Jim Beam and Jack Daniels.”
Arthur gets a kick out of his own joke there, and just to clarify with the 104-year-old, the interview asks:
“Those are your secrets?”
Arthur grins from ear to ear and responds with:
“Yeah, those are my two good friends.”
The interview doubles down and provides a follow-up question for Arthur, asking:
“And that’s how you’ve lived so long?”
Walters Jr., probably feeling like he had made his point pretty clear, added:
“Well, they’ve helped me along.”
We can always learn something from our elders, and I’m sure a good number of us will take this advice from Arthur in stride. Drink more Jim Beam and Jack Daniels and live a long, happy life? Sure, I can do that.
The news station asked Arthur if he had any other advice to give to the younger generation (which what exactly is the “younger generation” to a 104-year-old? 50 is pretty young by comparison right?), and he gave another all-time quote:
“If there’s something you want, you’ve got to work for it. And if you fail a few times, get back up and get back to it.”
Words to certainly live by from Arthur, who seems to have this whole life thing figured out. God bless him, and here’s to another 104:
