Misao Okawa is in the news. She is one-hundred and seventeen years of age today. The oldest person in the world celebrated her birthday with her family a day earlier in her nursing home in Osaka. Among other guests, her ninety-two-year-old son was also there yesterday. She is now celebrated for saying that all these years do not seem such a long time. According to the news, now there are close to sixty-thousand people in Japan who are past their hundredth birthday. Looking at the pictures of the oldest person in the world, who is said to be in excellent health, I cannot suppress a sigh of relief at the thought that I am not Japanese. Perish the thought.