WHEN you look at Enid Noel it's hard to believe she’s 99.
Noel was born on May 6, 1922.
Some might equate being 99 with certain things like limited mobility, difficulty with short-term memory, among others, but Noel has none of these.
The World Health Organization (WHO) says some of the common health conditions associated with ageing include hearing loss, cataracts and refractive errors, back and neck pain and osteoarthritis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, diabetes, depression, and dementia. It added as people age they are likely to experience several conditions at the same time.
[caption id="attachment_888636" align="alignnone" width="768"] Enid Noel is 99 and will celebrate her 100 th birthday next year. At 99, she does everything for herself including sewing her own face masks. - Photos courtesy Natasha Leon[/caption]
But the 99-year-old La Horquetta, Arima resident has none of these and can still easily outdo this reporter in the two-step. She visits her doctor every three months for a check-up.
“Up to now, everything is all right. In the early days, about four or three years ago, I had a weak valve to my heart. I went to hospital and took the treatment and so on and since then that is it,” she said.
She still sews and makes all of her masks.
What’s her secret?
The first is her unwavering and enduring faith in her God.
When asked about her secret to a long, well-lived life, Noel said, “A close relationship with the Lord because we can do nothing without his will.
“And he directs me what to do and what not to do.
“Even though I might do something on my own, he will tell me, ‘You’re not to do so and so. It is not nice for you'.”
Every morning Noel prays and thanks God for her ageing process.
But there is another secret Noel attributes to her long life and that is dancing. Something she has always loved and still enjoys doing.
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Long ago, Noel would go dancing at events, doing fox trot at black and white balls, and won prizes while attending those dances.
Noel’s life has produced six children (four alive, two deceased), 18 grandchildren, 33 great grandchildren and two great, great grandchildren.
She was born in Tobago and grew up with just her mother. She left Tobago at 12 and came to Trinidad.
“My elder sister wanted more for me. I am my mother’s last child in four of us. My eldest sister and brother wanted me to have more education and facilities.
“So they decided they would come to Trinidad. At that time, I went to school there. They just wanted me, especially as the last sister, to get what they did not get and to be a little more modern.”
When she came to Trinidad the family lived at Coffee Street, San Fernando, and she went to school there as well. But she got married early and this displeased some of her family members.
“What they wanted from me, it was a little disappointing. I got married and had to go with my husband.”
Noel was marri
