We Are Here Until Our Work Is Done

When Don Juan Ponce de Leon landed in present day St. Augustine, Florida, in 1513, he thought that he had discovered the "Fountain Of Youth."

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Ponce de Leon marked the spot with a large, stone cross in the ground at the site of the natural spring.

The notion of a "Fountain Of Youth" was likely presented to Ponce de Leon as lore from the natives about a river, spring or fountain in the land of Bimini whose fabled waters contained mystical curing powers such that any old person who bathed in them would regain his youth.

Ponce de Leon, however, died in 1521.

Ponce de Leon was not alone in his quest for a "Fountain Of Youth." Alexander the Great searched for one in eastern Asia and a legend among the Polynesians locates the fountain of perpetual youth in Hawaii.

According to Tibetan legend, Shangri-la is a mystical sanctuary hidden in the Hamalayas where people lived for hundreds of years. The legend served as the basis for the paradise described in the 1933 James Hilton novel, "Lost Horizon" and a film by the same title, in 1937. The Chinese government renamed Zhongdian county in Yunnan province, bordering Tibet, to Shangri-la county, in 2002, and has since closed the area to further investigation.

The quest for restoring youth and eternal life seems to be without cultural boundaries. For example, the Egyptians, by means of mummification and celestial alignment of the pyramids, sought the life hereafter.

Another popular construct is the Holy Grail, sought by King Arthur and Indiana Jones alike.

Accoring to "Monty Python And The Holy Grail," the French have no interest in joining the quest for the Holy Grail as "[They've] already got one... and, yes, it's-a very nice! 'Fetchez' la vache!"

The Holy Grail is said to be a legendary, sacred vessel from which Christ ate the Paschal lamb at the Last Supper. It was passed to Joseph of Arimathea, who used it to gather Christ's blood at the Crucifixion. Joseph was later imprisoned by the Jews for 42 years. During that time, the Holy Grail is accredited with providing him sustenance until he was liberated by Vespasian.

It is as this time that the Holy Grail is purported to have been brought to Britain and the story of Perceval began, but never ended. Chretien de Troyes wrote "Le Conte du Graal" ("The Story of the Grail"), but was stopped mid-sentence due to untimely death.

The Quest to remain Forever Young continues to this day.

Cosmetic surgery gives new life to old faces, or any body part of your choosing, and the latest fad of administering shots of poison into your face relaxes the muscles that cause wrinkles. Meanwhile, medical science continues to zero in on the mechanisms that cause aging and how to slow, or even someday stop, the aging process and increase longevity or offer immortality.

Still, others claim to have found the "Fountain Of Youth" within themselves.

Drawing from biblical quotations such as "If you believe in me, you will never thirst... Rivers of living water shall flow from your bellies" (John 7:38) and "Drink water from thy own cistern, and running waters from thine own well" (Proverbs 5:15), practioners of "Auto-Immune Therapy," "Urine Therapy" (or simply "UT), claim a well-documented, proven record of the healing power of pee. Yes, they want you to drink it and rub it all over whatever ails you.

Whatever...