I spent some time recently with a little person who is one of my very favourite people.

She is an absolute tonic to be around because everything enthuses her whether it’s visiting the swings, reading a special book or wearing her favourite dress which has a dinosaur on it. 

Enthusiasm is infectious, isn’t it? And it’s something I think we don’t encourage enough in ourselves at our stage in life.  

I know that growing older isn’t entirely a bundle of laughs. We have more aches and pains, worry about silly things, rarely sleep as well as we used to and so on.

And yet, there is so much to enthuse about, and when we do, not only do we feel happy and optimistic, but others find our company enjoyable and stimulating. 

The other important factor to note is that when we have enthusiasm for a task, activity or outing, we tend to find the energy to pursue it. And energy, as we’ve often discussed in this column, is the holy grail as we grow older.    

So how can we generate more enthusiasm?

I think one strategy is to ensure we have sufficient high spots in our days, even little ones.

Many of us who have nursed a sick relative or partner know the importance of these. Life shrinks around you in those circumstances, but if you can find a TV comedy you both enjoy or buy a favourite flavour of ice cream that your loved one can manage to eat, you can feel surprisingly enthusiastic and uplifted.  

Those of us, however, who remain pretty normal and healthy have numerous choices at our disposal and I believe it’s important we enter into them joyfully. After all, one day it might be too late. 

So, to come back to my special little person, what would stir your enthusiasm in the way hers is generated by a trip to the swings? 

One subject that may be on many people’s minds is travel. How many of you, I wonder, while you were still working full time, had hopes and dreams of a retirement full of far-flung holidays and thrilling expeditions? 

Have you been on any of them yet? I hope so. But if not, maybe now is the time to dust off these ideas and progress them. I know that for many of us Covid got in the way of such projects and that we’re all older now. But let’s not give up on our aims and ambitions because they can enthuse us in a remarkable way. 

And while you’re thinking about what you might do, give some thought to who you might do such things with. 

You may be lucky and in a loving relationship with someone who has the same attitudes and goals. But there will be many reading this column who are either alone, or with a long-term partner who no longer has the health or appetite for the same ideas that float your boat.

What can you do about this? 

Well, if it happens, we all have to sort this situation in our own way, but I know many couples who have accepted that they want different things out of life in their latter years and have accommodated that fact and remained together.   

If you are more enthusiastic about adventures than your spouse if you have one, do you perhaps know an individual among your circle of friends who shares your passions and who might explore them with you?   

If not, maybe this is the time to open up that circle of friends. As we get into September all sorts of classes and courses will be starting up again. Why not see what’s available? The strong possibility is that if you engage in something you love, you will get on well with others who enjoy it too. Many of us make new mates that way. 

Another possibility is to organise a coffee or drinks get together, invite a number of your friends, and also ask each of them to bring along an acquaintance, relative or pal whom you don’t know. You may be fortunate and find someone among them who is on your wavelength and wants to tackle similar activities.  

I also think it helps if you break out of your current routine. Buy something to eat you wouldn’t normally cook. Walk to the shops a different way from usual. Watch a TV documentary on something you know nothing about. This kind of change can often enthuse us and open our minds to different possibilities. 

We may never recapture the off-the-scale enthusiasm we had as small children, but let us aim, nonetheless, to be individuals who have a real zest for life and allow ourselves to feel exhilarated at good things that happen. 

I was once on a walking holiday where the party included a woman whose knees were in seriously bad shape. But every day, she dosed herself up with pain killers and walked every step with the rest of us. 

‘I’m doing the stuff I love for as long as I can,’ she told me, enthusiastically.  

I’m sure many of us would benefit from doing the same.