World's oldest person sprightly until end

0 Comments | AFP, August, 2007

TOKYO (AFP) — The world's oldest person Yone Minagawa, who has died at age 114, was as sprightly as ever until the moment she got into bed for her eternal rest, her carer said Tuesday.

Minagawa, who enjoyed good food and a bit of alcohol, died Monday at a nursing home in Japan's southwestern Fukuoka prefecture.

"She was sprightly until a day before," the caretaker told AFP. "When I found her, she looked as if she was sleeping peacefully."

Born on January 4, 1893, Minagawa was widowed at an early age. She raised her five children by selling flowers and vegetables in a coal mining town.

Stout-hearted even after age 100, Minagawa would drink some Japanese sake or other alcoholic beverage every day, although in more recent years her favourite treat...