Gloria’s love for music started when she took piano lessons as a child. “They couldn’t get me to the piano, then after a while they couldn’t get me away from it,” she tells TODAY.com.
The oldest of three, Gloria grew up in Missouri during what she says was a “good, pleasant childhood” where she was happy.
Gloria has asked to have her last name omitted from this article for privacy.
Throughout her 100 years of life, she’s sustained her affinity for music, from learning in her youth, to working as a secretary in the Washington University music department and continuing to sharpen her piano skills today. “It’s very important to see how music developed and became more expressive,” she says, and she’s had the time to do so.
Gloria’s long life has afforded her experience. “Well, the very fact that I’ve lived this long, it certainly surprised me,” she says, but it’s provided her the chance to learn, embracing the things that sustain her from music and beyond. Ahead, she reveals the most practical lessons.
Be Grateful
“I’ve been thankful and humble and have a good perspective on things. Just don’t try to get too self-centered, don’t have delusions of grandeur,” says Gloria — her ode to keeping a positive but realistic attitude.
One connection she’s especially grateful for is the one she had with her husband, Hyman, whose name she says means “life.”
“We were very happy together; we were very content with each other,” says Gloria. “Who could ask for anything more?”
While there are no secrets to achieving gratitude, it requires dedicated practice. “Be happy with the years that you have,” Gloria advises. “Be thankful for every day. Every day is important,” she says. “I’m just very humbly thankful, that’s all.”
Surround Yourself with Loved Ones
Gloria has a strong bond with her three children and two grandchildren. “We’re all very close, I enjoy their company, and I try very hard to be a good mother to them,” she says.
Proximity allows her to maintain meaningful connection. Because they live nearby, “I keep contact with them every day. They’re interested in music also; we just talk about a lot of things.”
Parenting, she says, was made all the better because she raised her children alongside Hyman, who she called a “very considerate, good father…. He was very sympathetic to (the children), he followed their schoolwork and made them feel secure.”
Embrace the Beauty of Music
“The piano is a really expressive instrument, sort of like you have a little orchestra all to yourself,” Gloria says.
The 100-year-old still plays the piano to this day, emphasizing the importance of daily practice. Though she admits that she’ll sometimes miss a few practice sessions, but “can always get back to it.”
Classical music is her favorite. The genre’s musicians, she says, have “beautiful ideas.”
And the symphony, she adds, is the ideal place to listen to them. The experience made even sweeter when her children join her at concerts.
Stay Curious
When Gloria isn’t occupied by music, she turns her attention to reading. “I like to read science books and history books,” she says.
But most of all, she also enjoys reading astronomy books. “It gives you a whole idea of what’s up there in outer space,” she says. “Astronomy gives you a worldwide view; we’re such a small part of a vast universe.”
Looking up invites contemplation, says Gloria. “I think everybody looks up at the heavens, and they look at the stars and wonder what they are.”