Longevity is a universal desire. We often ask: how can we extend our years, enjoy more joyful moments, sustain long careers, nurture healthy relationships, or build businesses to last across generations?

Around the world, scholars and thinkers have studied these aspirations. In Japan, for instance, communities such as on Okinawa are home to some of the highest numbers of centenarians. Researchers point to their simple diet, clean water, strong family ties, and active lifestyles as the key to their long lives.

Books have also guided many in their search for longevity. John Gray’s “Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus” offered insights into the differences between men and women, encouraging deeper understanding between partners to foster enduring relationships. More recently, authors like Mel Robbins in “The Let Them Theory” remind us to release what we cannot control, reduce unnecessary stress, and focus instead on living fully and peacefully.

Even in business, longevity is an aspiration. Jack Welch, the legendary CEO of General Electric, wrote in his memoirs how discipline, innovation, and people-centered leadership transformed GE into one of the world’s largest conglomerates during his time, ensuring the company’s success would be passed on robustly to his successors.

All these examples inspire us to pursue a life of length and quality. But what is the deeper essence of this aspiration? Longevity is not only about years added to our lives; it is about what we do with those years. To me, longevity means seizing the chance to perform fulfilling acts and leaving behind a legacy of love and compassion.

This truth came home to me last week when we celebrated the 46th anniversary of our family’s real estate company, VAA Builders Corporation. I remembered my late father, the founder of VAA and former Las Piñas Mayor Nene Aguilar, who often delivered the keynote address during company anniversaries. He would remind us that what started out as a small team of three people grew because we held fast to two guiding principles: industry and compassion.

We were not only building affordable homes for hardworking families — we were nurturing the people within our company. Today, Veraville has grown to more than 30 employees and 39 communities with over 6,000 houses across Las Piñas City. That is longevity in action: years of work rooted in care, multiplied into decades of service and opportunities for others.

As we strive for longer lives, longer careers, or longer-lasting institutions, let us never forget that the true measure of longevity is not in numbers but in the love, kindness, and purpose we weave into every day.

As the Book of Proverbs beautifully reminds us: “The fear of the Lord adds length to life, but the years of the wicked are cut short.” (Proverbs 10:27)

Longevity is not just about how long we live, but how deeply we touch the lives of others while we are here.