Page 18 - Boca Club News - August '24

Page 18, Boca Club News

The Arts
The Arts

Book Review…“The Book of Charlie: Wisdom from

the Remarkable Life of a 109-Year-Old Man”

By Nils A. Shapiro Charlie volunteered and served in the U.S. Army Air Force. he was gone was a single sheet of notepaper on which he had
David Von Drehle was already a When anesthesia was discovered as a way to ease patients’ written a list of 15 definitive rules that serve perfectly as a
noted writer—a columnist and editor suffering, he was trained in its application and became one of guide to a successful life.
at the Washington Post and author of the military’s leading anesthesiologists, training many others I will list only five here and urge you to read this book to
four earlier successful books—when under his command. get the full terrific story…and the other ten secrets you will
he decided to move with his wife and Charlie was married more than once. Life was not always want to know of Charlie’s well-lived life:
four young children to Kansas City, ideal. In his final years he was interviewed many times by Savor special moments.
Missouri. But he had no idea when he the media and asked about his philosophy of life. “I haven’t Cry when you need to.
first met the elderly neighbor who lived given it much thought,” he would reply, except to add that Feel Deeply.
in the house across the street, who said he was “washing his his mother’s advice to “Do the right thing” covers a lot of Take a chance.
girlfriend’s car,” that it was a moment that would change his situations. But among the items Charlie’s family found when Enjoy wonder.
life forever.
For that man was Charlie
White, already 102 years
of age—a retired physician NOW ACCEPTING NEW PATIENTS
who had been born before
the invention of radio and
lived long enough to use a
smartphone; a man born soon Boca Raton Concierge Medicine Doctor
after the first flight of the
Wright Brothers who later
watched man’s landing on Board Certified in
the moon, and whose own
medical practice began before Internal Medicine
the discovery of penicillin, with Added Qualifications in
was limited to comforting
the patient so that the body could heal itself…and continued Geriatrics (2002).
through the discovery of antibiotics and today’s latest
pharmaceutical and surgical advances. Steven E. Reznick, MD, FACP
But from the friendship that developed between these
two men, and which prompted this bestselling book, was the Voted a “Best Doctor”
author’s evolving awareness of the extraordinary wisdom and by his peers.
positive philosophy that had enabled Charlie White to survive
all that life had placed in his path those many years. He had
taken to heart the lesson his mother had taught him from an Call to request a complimentary meeting
early age: Do the right thing.
For David Von Drehle, this became an opportunity to pass with Dr. Reznick.
along to his own children the kinds of lessons he had always
hoped he could provide for them.
The following excerpt makes it clear that everyone 561.368.0191
fortunate enough to read this wonderful book can derive that
same benefit:
“Charlie was a man of science. As a physician, he knew 7280 W. Palmetto Park Road | 205N
how the human body goes—and how it stops. He was the first Boca Raton, FL 33433
to say that his extraordinary life span was a fluke of genetics www.bocaconciergedoc.com
and fortune. Still, as I’ve reflected on this remarkable friend,
I’ve come to see that he was more than a living history lesson,
and more than just the winner of a genetic Powerball. He was
a case study in how to thrive—not just survive but thrive—
through any span of years, short or long. People often asked
him about the secret of longevity, and Charlie was always
scrupulously honest: there’s no secret, just luck. But if he knew
no secrets to a long life, he knew plenty about a happy life.
Through tragedy and loss, poverty and setbacks, missteps and ARCHIVE GALLERIES
blown chances, he maintained a steadiness, an evenness, and
a self-reliance that today might be called resilience. He had a
gift for seizing joy, grabbing opportunities, and holding on to
things that matter. And he had an unusual knack for an even PAYS HIGHER PRICES FOR FINE ART AND ANTIQUES
more difficult task: letting go of all the rest.”
There were many highs and lows in a life as long as this.
And witnessing them over more than a century through • Oil Paintings • Sterling Silver • Collectibles
Charlie’s eyes is a remarkable experience, especially in the • Oriental Rugs • Objects of Art • Fine Crystal
words of such a gifted writer. As just a few of many, many • Tapestries • Sculptures • Orientalia
examples:
Dr. Charlie White’s medical career began in the depths • Fine Furniture • Bronzes • Tiffany Items
of the Great Depression of the early 1930s, when making • Service Plates • Porcelain • Clocks
house calls was a typical way to treat patients. The situation
sometimes called for the emergency removal of a child’s
tonsils. At such and similar occasions, parents who literally We Also Purchase Men’s And Ladies’ Items Including:
could not afford a nickel in payment instead invited the doctor
for dinner or offered anything he would like to take from their • Old Watches • Cufflinks • Smoking Items • Coins • Antique Jewelry
cupboard. • Designer Handbags • Fine Modern Jewelry • Vintage Costume Jewelry
Charlie had a tough childhood. His father, whom he loved
dearly, was a pastor. One day, when the man was entering
the elevator in an office building the inexperienced operator One Piece Or Entire Contents Purchased
of the elevator accidentally raised it and Charlie’s father
slipped and fell many floors into the empty chute and was CALL NOW FOR A FREE CONSULTATION, NO OBLIGATION
killed. Charlie’s mother was left with five children and no
source of income.
One of Charlie’s high school buddies owned a 1917 Model
T Ford touring car with bicycle fenders, Chesterfield seats and CASH 561-498-7536 COURTEOUS
a fold-up canopy. Several of the guys decided to set out for PAYMENTS IN HOME
California after their graduation in May 1922, taking on farm UPON REQUEST SERVICE
work to pay their way cross country. The description of that
trip includes instructions on how to drive that Model T.