In this installment of Page 69,
we put Paul Mobley and Allison Milionis'
If I Live to Be 100: The Wisdom of Centenarians to the test.
The words of the photographer, taken from the
Afterword, on the inspiration for this project:
This project started as an extension of my previous
book, American Farmer. As I traveled around the country meeting farmers, I was
surprised to find that quite a few of them were centenarians. I had always
thought if someone lived to age 100, it would be bittersweet—yes, they would
hit a milestone that most people would never hit, but I pictured those late
years as full of sickness and hardship…….. I was completely fascinated by these
elders; I found myself wanting to learn all the details of their lives, to find
out what inspired them to keep going. At that point, I knew I had found my next
project. I would travel to all fifty states and photograph at least one centenarian
in each.
In the words of the author, Allison Milionis:
I received a call from the publisher in October 2014, asking
if I’d be interested in working on a book project that featured people 100
years and older. The job required interviewing persons photographed by Paul
Mobley, and/or their family members, and writing an essay about each one.
The idea was that these would not be essays that simply outlined a person’s
life in stiff chronological order, but instead, a glimpse of who they are, how
they lived their lives, and what wisdom they can share.
After perusing Paul’s website and the book proposal he’d
sent to Rizzoli, I accepted. I was taken with Paul’s portraits in his previous
book American Farmer. They were so honest, and bold.
And how could I pass up an opportunity to speak with people
who are 100 years old? What wisdom would I personally glean from them?
At the beginning of the project, I imagined that Paul’s
portraits would reflect the spirit of his subjects, while my essays were meant
to be a snapshot of their character.
I think the book accomplishes this, though the process
wasn’t easy. Still, I found a way through perseverance, I suppose, which also
happened to be a common trait in the individuals I interviewed – and the one
that most inspired me. In fact, if I had to name one thing I took away
from the experience of working on this book, it would be that perseverance is
essential for survival, to thrive in life, and to get books done.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PAGE 69
If I Live to Be 100: The Wisdom of Centenarians
Alvin
Sexten
Washington
Court House, Ohio
Born
July 3, 1908
Alvin
Sexten was a third generation farmer in Fayette County, Ohio. His family grew a
number of crops and raised beef cattle, but also kept chickens and dairy cows.
As a young man, he’d farmed with a team of horses. By the end of his farming
days, he owned self-driving tractors. Alvin rolled with the changes of the
times; he embraced new technology or anything that improved his efficiency.
Hard
work was Alvin’s modus operandi and he attributed it to his long life. He was
still hauling grain to the elevator at ninety-eight. “Never stop to think about
dying,” Alvin liked to say. “There’s no time for that.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Paul Mobley is an American photographer who captures the true essence of the nature of a person's soul. From remote Alaskan villages to the majestic palaces of Croatia, Mobley travels around the world to find the face of a thousand words. He lives in New York and Arizona with his wife Suzanne and their two wonderful daughters, Camden and Paige.
Allison Milionis
is a writer and the author of Horse Sanctuary, which profiled thirteen
sanctuaries and the people who devote their lives to equine rescue. Her work
has appeared in publications in the United States and abroad, and her topics of
interest are far-reaching from animal welfare and the environment to
architecture, travel and the arts. She lives in Portland, Oregon, with her
partner, Cameron, and two extraordinary exotic birds.
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