The Man Nearing A Century

This is the longest living man I have met thus far in my 24 years of life.

While working on set in Chendgu, a well-dressed, elderly man walked through the bamboo forest towards us. The day before, I heard that we would be bringing in a 97 year old man as one of our actors. Having never met someone above the age of 80, I drew up some images of what a 97 year old, Chinese man would look like and be like. I didn’t make the connection between the man that was walking towards us and the information I was told the other day. He just didn’t fit what I had in mind for someone closing in on a century. But it was him.

We got him changed and briefed him on his role. He was to perform QiGong Tapping, a traditional Chinese medicine practice. It involves tapping various parts of ones body to stimulate and release pent-up energy.

While observing and photographing him play his part, I reflected over why I had struggled believing that this was in fact, a 97 year old man. Why do I believe that at that age, you cannot be walking as gracefully as he? Dressed as classy as he? Sitting as upright as he with no support? Why do I believe that at 97 years old, you’d be waiting for death, day by day?

Here in front of me was a man nearing a century years old, with life etched in his face and his body molded by labour, acting in a film with a bunch of 20 to 30 year olds. In front of me was a man nearing a century years old experiencing something new; doing something for the very first time.

With each press of the camera button, an old thought and fear was replaced by a new and hopeful realization of age.

We helped dress him back into his original clothes, and he buttoned up his own shirt. He put his cap back on, stood in front of me for a few portraits and then walked off.