She has been windsurfing every summer for several years now, playing golf in a Roman club, skiing in winter, and in her native Liguria walking miles and miles of trails in the Sestri Levante area-all this and more at the age of 98. This is the story of Maria Carla Rivano, known to everyone as Mariuccia, who will blow ninety-eight candles this coming November.

The shining example of how it is possible not to give weight to one's identity card. By now customary in the summer she travels to Sardinia to windsurf. She has six grandchildren, widowed for more than 20 years and married again to a man 30 years younger.

Time never seems to pass for Mariuccia, who once back in her home in Rome was surprised by all the attention she received: “I don't understand why all this attention to me. I have never been the classic housewife who takes care of household chores and children, although I have had three. I have always played sports, since I was young and continue to do so now that I am elderly.” A life spent exercising, continuously, trying practically all disciplines. “ I started swimming in Mussolini's time,” Mariuccia recounts.

Having become a widow more than 20 years ago, Mariuccia's days became longer and emptier: “When you are a widow, the days become endless.

Springs in Sestri Levante never seemed to end, so I looked for diversions. I bought a secondhand piano for my grandchildren,I have six of them, and I got into it too. Lesson number one I took on April 8, the birthday of one of my children. The first ode played? Schiller's Hymn to Joy, a tribute to life that is mind-blowing. Now, however, I've slowed down a bit.”
The woman, however, has managed to find a new love that has given her new vitality: “I met Mauro, my current husband. When there is a person in the house to talk to, the rest takes a back seat.” Mariuccia recounted the days she spends with her new husband, Mauro, 30 years her junior, an electrical engineer: “Our days are all a mess. We have the home time difference. He likes to get up early and eat breakfast right away, I need my own time. And no, I don't feel like eating as soon as I wake up. I can pull even 10:30 or 11 without putting anything under my teeth, which drives Mauro crazy.”

Needless to deny it, we would all like to arrive in Mariuccia's condition at her age. In addition to practicing sports for as long as she can remember, you certainly also need a proper and continuous diet regime over time. In fact, the woman said she never followed a particular diet: “ When I was younger, I ran an inter-company catering business. To the people who came to eat at my place, I used to prepare live foods such as fresh meat. Today I struggle to find the flavors of the past. Even French fries don't taste like French fries because they are frozen.” But then what does Mariuccia eat: “A little bit of everything, but wisely. I know, for example, that I must prefer vegetables. Mauro prepares them for me in salads. His specialty: grated carrots tomatoes and raw celery cut into rounds. Then some toasted bread cut into chunks and, if I feel like it, some Taggiasca olives, some feta or buffalo mozzarella. In the evening, a mix of cooked vegetables: carrots, potatoes, and zucchini.”

There is also no shortage of regular splurges: “A game of golf: we have 9 holes together, we have crazy fun. Then we'll go for pizza and, if we feel like it, some ice cream, like two kids. After all, that's how we feel.”