Jun. 25: The Swedish Art of Aging Exuberantly
June 18, 2026
The Swedish Art of Aging Exuberantly – great advice on aging in style and grace
On the cover of her charming new book, The Swedish Art of Aging Exuberantly, author Margareta Magnusson tells us the book offers “life wisdom from someone who will (probably) die before you.”
Sadly, she passed away in March of this year at the age of 91. However, her last book is an eye-opener. The book, she writes, provides “discoveries I have made about becoming very old – some of the discoveries were hard to accept, but many of them have been rather wondrous.”
In a chapter on the importance of keeping in touch with old friends, titled “have a gin and tonic with a friend,” she marvels at how today’s technology allows her to stay in touch with old friends from other countries.
However, she is always surprised why her children and grandchildren ask why she still has a landline. How else, she writes, would one be able to find the cell phone?
“It’s important that we who are past eighty keep up-to-date with technology,” she advises. “Otherwise we risk missing out on so much that makes modern life both easier and more enjoyable – not to mention we don’t want our children and grandchildren to think we’re too old and square to participate.”
Later, she talks about staying positive over a lifetime where “the world is always ending.”
She recalls her father remembering the Spanish flu outbreak that took place in her native Sweden, killing tens of thousands. She also remembers being evacuated to the country during the Second World War, at 10, where her farm job was to feed the turkeys. After the war, it was the Cold War and the threat of nuclear attacks, and later, other calamities like Chernobyl, AIDS, and COVID-19.
“The world is always ending, and yet it continues to survive,” she observes. “We must always hope for a sustainable future, but hope alone is not enough. Even if we ourselves may not live to see it, we musn’t be so preoccupied with living in the present that we forget to leave room for – and help prepare for – a possible future.”
Another maxim is “don’t leave empty-handed,” an old Swedish saying.
It means that when you get up from the table, bring something with you – a dirty dish, the salt and pepper – and help put it away. “I think the principle of not leaving empty-handed can be applied everywhere you go in life. If there are dirty clothes on your bedroom floor and you pass the laundry basket empty-handed, that is not clever. The pile will only get bigger. Don’t leave empty-handed,” she writes.
In a chapter titled “Volunteer as much as you can,” she explains how helping out “makes you feel useful and good about yourself,” she first tried it when her family moved to the U.S. when she was in her 40s.
“Every Monday, I volunteered to take care of the school’s library for the younger children. Not all human beings look forward to Monday mornings, but I sure did.” The young kids “were always so friendly, curious, and full of energy. Even better was that their energy was very contagious, I too felt energized when the day was done.”
She adds that she has “met so many nice people while doing it; some even became lifelong friends.”
Taking care of your hair is important for older ladies, she notes. “I feel – blessed as I am with a good head of hair – that it’s more important to take care of your hair” than trying to manage wrinkles. “If you care about your appearance – which I do – then your hair is a better workplace than your face.”
In a later chapter, she advises us all to treat young people “as you want to be treated. Don’t tell them about your bad knee, again. Don’t guilt-trip them about not calling enough. Just ask them questions. Listen to them. Act interested. Give them food and tell them to go enjoy their lives. If you do these things they will keep calling and visiting.”
In a sweet story about life in her two-room apartment and living with mobility issues, she mentions that she has named her walker “Lars Harald, after my husband who is no longer with me. The walker, much like my husband was, is my support and my safety.”
Her final advice on aging gracefully is to “take care of something everyday,” whether it is pet or a houseplant.
“Given how slowly I sometimes move, just visiting them and watering them if they need it can take a while… I really do love the small daily habit of visiting with them and caring for them. Each day that I am alive and they are alive feels like a marvel.”
This book is also a marvel – a beautifully told tale.
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Written by Martin Biefer
Martin Biefer is Senior Pension Writer at Avery & Kerr Communications in Nepean, Ontario. A veteran reporter, editor and pension communicator, he’s now a freelancer. Interests include golf, line dancing and classic rock, and playing guitar. Got a story idea? Let Martin know via LinkedIn.
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