Have you ever heard George Burns’s quote, “If you ask what is the single most important key to longevity, I would have to say it is avoiding stress, worry and tension. And if you didn’t ask me, I’d still have to say it?” Stella (Jean) Cannilla could have written that quote herself. On January 20, 2020, Stella celebrated her 100th birthday, sharing two secrets to longevity: A life of no stress or worry.
Others would argue that a healthy diet meeting all nutrient groups and regular physical activity are key to good health and an extended lifespan. But for Stella, she believes it’s all in your mindset. Rather than dwelling and agonizing, the recent birthday girl says she simply takes life as it comes.
And thanks to her easy-going mentality, Stella had the opportunity to celebrate her special birthday celebration with her family in Z-Two, Charleston! An image of her party is as follows.
“We are certainly blessed to have her in our lives all these years,” said her son John.
Stella is sure lucky to have made it to a year that many of us wish to live to. But many of us hold the common question anyone would think of asking her, “How, just how, were you able to make it to that number without stress, Stella?”
Did she live a simple life? Did she live secluded out in the country, living life slowly? Did she refrain from having children? Wrong.
Actually, the senior had lived a life like many of us today. She got married to a man named Jack Cannilla and moved to Brooklyn, remaining with the same man for 67 years until he passed away in March 2018. She raised three children: Sal (now 69), John (now 65), and Maria Cipriano (now 61). She also has six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren who are full of life.
As for her favorite things to do? She loves watching television (especially if the Texas Rangers are playing), solving word search puzzles, attending church on a weekly basis, and playing cards or Bingo. She’s just like many of us!
But what makes her different? Maybe it’s not the fact that she doesn’t experience stress; maybe it’s how she handles it, you know, like letting things go when feeding those worries only makes it worse and simply having faith that things will work out in the end.
Either way, her two secrets to a long life seem virtually impossible these days. Many of us are juggling a full-time job, energetic children and/or grandchildren, a never-ending to-do list, all while somehow managing to keep our sanity. You know how it goes! However, Stella’s triple-digit lifespan and happy disposition prove that maybe she is onto something. Perhaps she’s living proof that living without stress and refusing to ruminate on our everyday worries can, in fact, be done.
In the end, it’s great to hear that Stella has aged gracefully and doesn’t expend all of her time and energy on mulling over life regrets, things that are out of her control, or problems that have occurred in the past. I think we could all learn from Stella (myself included) that sometimes we just need to shake off the nervous energy and just live life.
We wish Stella a very happy belated birthday and many more beautiful years with her family to come!
Check out another beautiful photo of the birthday girl (center) below. (Top-center is her husband Jack.)
