subject: Old Age Miseries [print this page] Old Age Miseries Old Age Miseries
OLD AGE: SORROWS AND JOYS
For over two hours we waited outside the doctor's room. When the door opened again, I expected to see the nurse calling out names. I was all ears. To my surprise and disappointment my eyes met a very aged man, being guided out of the room by a certain woman. I forgot all about the nurse and fixed my gaze on this old man who did not seem to bother whether anybody looked at him or not. He was once a handsome man for he was well built in stature.
His once beautiful face, which coupled with his stalwart figure, could make many a woman's heart throb, had lost its attractiveness. Now, not many would look at his pitiful self for his face seemed to have assumed a different shape, not known to geometricians. His eyes had become enlarged and did not seem to be fixed on anything in particular.
He opened his mouth to speak and a quick look inside satisfied my expectation missing teeth! Still being guided by the woman, they made their way toward the exit. Then I began to look around for more of the kind of the old man. They were there, old men and women. The old women had covered their heads but the men had nothing to cover their bald heads. This revealed the shapes and sizes of their heads. Where the jaws had not assumed some surplus flesh from folds, they had sunk in.
Then I asked myself: is that what I will become? "Why?" I asked again: Are not these old people the once beautiful babies that everybody wanted to talk to? Why do we grow up into this state? Is there no process whereby we can be rejuvenated at a certain time? I was lost in a deep thought when a strange noise made me start up.
I looked towards the direction of the noise and what did I see? Tall lanky young man in a strange outfit. He wore baggy trousers, the bottom ends rolled up to the knees to expose his stilted platform shoes, laced high to meet the trouser ends. Briskly he walked, confident of himself making rhythmical movements with his waist, he was soon lost in the crowd. Poor young man!
For how long can he wear those shoes? For how long he walk like he did? If he had seen the old man, would he have taken a look at him? Would he have thought that he could be like him some time to come?
Yes, this is life. How soon the old folk forget they were once young! How distant old age seems to the youth. Young people often ridicule the old and accuse them of being conservative. The way they dress may expose them to criticism and even taunts by the youth.
Do we call it a blessing when people live to ripe, ripe old age? When they cease to become useful and rather become a burden and a nuisance? Do such extremely aged people feel happy? Many seem more dejected then happy. They count the days to their death, the very same people who feared to die when they were young. It is not uncommon to come across aged persons who are still active and play useful roles both at home and in the society. An example was seen in the doctor we went to see.
Although age was telling on him, he looked strong and carried out his duties with patience, diligence and cheerfulness. When consultations were over, he pulled his drawer and from it took a coin which he dropped into the hand of my daughter.Todays children know the value of money and I wonder how the coin weighed in her hand! All the same, his cheerful attitude made vivid impression on me in contrast to what I had seen outside.
Then I remembered my own great grandmother who lived above one hundred years and yet endeared herself to both the old and the young. From her empty mouth, came ancient tales told in some strange English which I never understood but which I patiently listened to. Granny to me at that time was a paragon of knowledge for I wondered how and where she learnt to speak English! And she was a big gossip too.
She told me one old woman had lice in her mouth; another saved her money under her handkerchief above her head. These she said amidst laughter from her empty mouth! Many a child has drawn much pleasure from old folk and many an old person has served very useful purposes in many situations.
Like death, we cannot run away from old age. If we don't die young, we die old. Let us live well while we are young and may our age bring us manifold blessings,
