Whenever the oldest persons on the planet Earth are mentioned in the text, we can see that they had good life and they were careful to preserve their health and good looks. Jovan Jovanovic from Sarajevo is 109 years old, but his story is different from all the others.
His life was not luxurious, he survived several wars, wounds, abusing, and he was often hungry and wishing only a slice of bread. Today, he is the tenant of the Gerontology Center in Nedzarici, which is his home for the last 20 years.
But life did not cuddle him. He survived 5 wars (First and Second Balkan War, World War I and II, and the recent war in B&H) and he was left without anyone.
“All the misery that man can survive, I survived. All my life was a walk on thorns, and I was always between the anvil and the hammer. It is truly a miracle that a man who did not even have bread to eat, survived to this age. My life was terrible ever since I was born. I survived 5 wars and terror. Serbs destroyed my house, wounded me, and I lived like a dog for five months on the stairs, which was right next to the first fight line that was guarded by soldiers. Muslims saved me and helped me out,” he recalled.
He took the psychical strength to survive all these years from the scientific work that he is doing since his student days, when he won the first prize for his work. All prize winners had the honor to attend the dinner with the king at his court and received prize in money.
“I have published 222 works from the fields of Christian philosophy, pedagogy, history, geography, and lately I’ve studied the “Mountain Wreath”. I have an idea for my next work, but we’ll see how it goes,” he said.
“In life, the most important thing is to be a good man. Nothing more,” concluded Jovo.
(Source: M. N./Klix.ba)
