"Age does not depend upon years, but upon temperament and health. Some men are born old, and some never grow so"
About this Quote
Age here is treated less as a calendar tally than as a lived quality of spirit and body. Temperament points to the inner stance we bring to experience: curiosity or cynicism, flexibility or rigidity, playfulness or fear. Health provides the energy and resilience that make those stances sustainable. Put together, they produce a felt age that can diverge sharply from the number on a birth certificate.
"Some men are born old" gestures at temperaments that arrive early: an anxious vigilance, a precocious gravity born of responsibility, deprivation, or trauma, a habit of seeing novelty as threat rather than invitation. A child who has learned to be wary and self-restrained can seem older than peers. Illness can do the same, narrowing horizons and enforcing caution. "Some never grow so" names the opposite possibility: a spirit that keeps renewing itself, that tolerates surprise, learns, and laughs; a body maintained well enough to respond to what the spirit wants to do. The elder who keeps asking questions, tries new tools, and delights in other people carries youth forward even as decades pass.
Tryon Edwards, a 19th-century American theologian and collector of aphorisms, wrote amid a culture that prized moral character. His formulation blends that moral interest with an observational realism about health. Modern research echoes him: subjective age often predicts well-being better than chronological age, and biological markers show that lifestyle and stress can hasten or slow the body clock. Still, the aphorism is not a scolding denial of aging. It invites gentler judgments. We meet jaded 20-year-olds and exuberant 80-year-olds; the difference is not magic but a mix of temperament, circumstance, and care.
The line also hints at agency. While not all health or temperament is chosen, habits of movement, learning, connection, and gratitude can tilt us toward the kind of youthfulness that is available at any age.
"Some men are born old" gestures at temperaments that arrive early: an anxious vigilance, a precocious gravity born of responsibility, deprivation, or trauma, a habit of seeing novelty as threat rather than invitation. A child who has learned to be wary and self-restrained can seem older than peers. Illness can do the same, narrowing horizons and enforcing caution. "Some never grow so" names the opposite possibility: a spirit that keeps renewing itself, that tolerates surprise, learns, and laughs; a body maintained well enough to respond to what the spirit wants to do. The elder who keeps asking questions, tries new tools, and delights in other people carries youth forward even as decades pass.
Tryon Edwards, a 19th-century American theologian and collector of aphorisms, wrote amid a culture that prized moral character. His formulation blends that moral interest with an observational realism about health. Modern research echoes him: subjective age often predicts well-being better than chronological age, and biological markers show that lifestyle and stress can hasten or slow the body clock. Still, the aphorism is not a scolding denial of aging. It invites gentler judgments. We meet jaded 20-year-olds and exuberant 80-year-olds; the difference is not magic but a mix of temperament, circumstance, and care.
The line also hints at agency. While not all health or temperament is chosen, habits of movement, learning, connection, and gratitude can tilt us toward the kind of youthfulness that is available at any age.
Quote Details
| Topic | Aging |
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