My paternal grandmother was quite a character. She liked to have fun and was a little cheeky at times. She was known for her sassy rebuttals and if she was ever challenged on her behaviour, she’d say “I’m 82, you know”, as if being old somehow let her off.

Actually she used to say that when she was 72 as well. And when she was 62. Except in those days, she used to round the number up a bit for more effect.Older woman on a swing

As a child, I used to cringe in embarrassment when my gran made her little jokes out loud. Like when she commented on a woman’s hairdo on a bus. Now, this nice lady had a mohawk and it was dyed bright green. “Why on Earth do people need to dye their hair in such unnatural colours?!” she said rather too loudly.

When the woman turned around (and I tried to squeeze myself under my bus seat), my gran pulled out her favourite card: “I’m 82, you know”. Even though she was about 75 then. All was forgiven, of course. And the mohawked lady had a little chuckle too as she saw my gran patting her bright purple rinse in disgust.

It wasn’t just random people on the bus that encountered this “semi-senile” old dear and her wicked sense of humour. After clearly watching too many episodes of Fawlty Towers, my nan picked up the “hearing aid trick”.

She pretty much got whatever she wanted, since if anyone ever said “no” to her, she simply wouldn’t be able to hear it. And if someone suggested she adjust her hearing aid, of course, she wouldn’t be able to hear that either.

Others might have thought that her announcing her age was a sign that she’d gone a bit senile and her boldness could be excused. That was far from the truth – she was sharp as a pin. But she wanted them to think she was a bit doddery. Because, as I told you, she was a cheeky little minx.

Well a 50-year study now shows why my Gran was bright as a button and not afraid of having a little fun.

A study by the University of Montpellier showed that the more intelligent we are in our younger years, the younger we when feel when we’re actually pretty darned old. The paper, published in the journal Intelligence, showed that the higher IQ people have in their 20s, the younger Youthful old manthey feel in their 70s.

While factors like economic status didn’t seem to play as much of a part, some different personality traits did. People who were more “open to experience” felt much more youthful than they actually were.

The good news is that you can improve your IQ at any age, so if you want to feel more sprightly than your peers as you get older, start becoming smarter now.

And you can carry on your cheeky ways when you’re definitely old enough to know better, as a higher IQ and feeling young can help improve your health and lifespan too.

As for my nan, her youthful ways kept her having fun until the end. But now my dad’s getting on a bit (he was 70 last year), and he became a SpongeBob Squarepants fan a few years ago. Now, he won’t stop doing impressions of Patrick Starr in front of my friends. So, perhaps I’ll still have a little more cringing to do, but I expect that, happily, to go on for quite some years.

And if you can’t beat them, join them, by becoming a smarty-pants too.

https://www.wiseism.com/wp-content/uploads/funloving-seniors-e1535728929316.jpghttps://www.wiseism.com/wp-content/uploads/funloving-seniors-150x150.jpgThe WiseistWise LivingWise Mindhealthy mind,intelligence,iq,life,making the most of your life,mental clarity,science,wise mind,young at heart,youthMy paternal grandmother was quite a character. She liked to have fun and was a little cheeky at times. She was known for her sassy rebuttals and if she was ever challenged on her behaviour, she'd say “I'm 82, you know”, as if being old somehow let her off. Actually...Using Wisdom To Improve Your Life