Well, they knew how to have a good time back in the 40s without lots of money or newfangled gadgets … and it seems that at least one of them still does today, seven decades later.
Yorkshire lad Joseph Morton celebrated his 100th birthday just as he and his comrades celebrated VE day nearly 75 years ago and loved every minute of it while raising hundreds for The British Legion and The Alzheimer’s Society.
Wearing his military uniform he toured his local town of Morley in a Jeep, giving everyone the obligatory Jeep wave.
As well as having a great time, which I’m sure was the main purpose of the day, I think that he happily disproved quite a few sad assumptions we make every day.
The first is that to have a really exciting time you need to have money, youth and all the mod cons. None of this is necessary, not having these things is just a good excuse for not having a good time. The idea of making excuses for not having a good time may sound crazy to some people, and you are probably the kind of upbeat folks who would have enjoyed Joe’s Jeep the other day, but if we think hard we all know at least someone who lets time drift away.
As he jumped down from the Jeep to accept signed pictures of Dame Vera Lynn and Michael Portillo it was obvious to onlookers that Joe is one of the lucky ones in many ways, he still has all of his capacities as well as friends and family. But then so I guess do many of this article’s readers. A good time is an easy thing to have.