At the ripe old age of 122, Leandra Becerra begins her day at 5 a.m. and nods off to sleep around 11 p.m. Her favorite hobbies are listening to music, knitting and leafing through the pages of what she calls “interesting” literature.
She also still remembers the Mexican Revolution as if it were yesterday.
“I met Pancho Villa. We knew him as Doroteo Arango back then. He was a very attractive man,” she said. “But like my sister, I didn’t want to be a part of the army.”
The Reporter caught up with the remarkable Doña Leandra this week and asked her how Mexico has changed over the years.
“Pos sabe (who knows). I grew up in the countryside where there were no telephones or electricity. There was not even a car. We had to walk long distances and the only means of transportation we had were donkeys. But I’ve lived to see donkeys change to horses, the first cars that were made, the train and now there are vehicles everywhere.”
Doña Leandra doesn’t require visual aids, nor does she take medications. In fact, DIF Zapopan social work chief Mayra Gonzalez says that up until a few months ago, Becerra walked with a cane.
“If we give her a cane right now she would get up from that wheelchair and start walking. We only provided the wheelchair because she began complaining about joint pains. We also fear that she might fall again as she did recently.”
Becerra was born in Tamaulipas on August 31, 1887, but for the past 40 years has been residing in Zapopan. Her birth certificate was burned during the Cristero War in 1926, but through investigations, the Jalisco government was able to validate her age.
“Longevity runs in our family,” says Mirian Alvear Hernandez, Becerra’s great-granddaughter. Alvear believes the secret to her long life may have something to do with the natural foods that were consumed in the past and the humble but healthy lifestyle that her family members led when they grew up in Tamaulipas.
When asked about the secret to her longevity, the pragmatic Doña Leandra answered: “God gave this life to me. I guess he doesn’t need me yet.”
The centenarian was honored earlier this month by DIF Zapopan and given a certificate which ensures that she and her caregivers receive special benefits, including discounts on consumer items and services.
“She and her family will be given medical services free of cost,” said Marilu Garcia, DIF Zapopan’s public relations officer. “They will also get discounts on public services such as electricity and water and get the best prices on food items and products.”
The National Institute for the Elderly (Inapam) acknowledges Becerra as the oldest living person in Mexico. There is, however, an unofficial record of 126-year-old woman still living in Queretaro.
The current edition of the Guinness Book of World Records notes the oldest person alive as U.S. citizen Gertrude Baines. She passed away last September at the age of 115.
The Guinness Book only records the ages of persons whose family members wish to promote them.{/reg}
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