For all ages

Last year on this day, March 7, I had said, this year on this day I will be 70 whether, I am there or not. Here I am. 70 years, I hope my weight in Kg was also in 70. The lazy me need a lot of hard work to  achieve that figure. Now, I am carrying an excess weight, around 20 Kg, over stressing all my dear internal organs including my sweet heart, that has an assignment to work from womb to tomb.

 When I said I will be 70 this year, whether I am there or not, two or three well wishers called me to say it upset them. You should not talk like that, they said. Well , friends, that’s the only reality of life. Rest, everything comes and goes.

Age is just a number, uncle, that’s what the healthy youngsters tell you. For some, yes, for others it’s age.

Key to comfort is health at every age. Today you do not need to enter old age to own diseases and illness, purely due to lifestyles and pollutions. You can suffer in your thirties, more than some one in their sixties. Diabetes, Blood pressures, heart attacks, depression, you name it, you do not need an age these days.

My sister Indu Menon, near  her sixties, with no experience became an entrepreneur, making ordinary handloom products go global with her innovative designs, uplifting the weaving community, helping them with better earnings and life. She is an inspiration and a role model, from whom I have learned and not implemented. With the late Wendell Rodricks, Fashion Designer

Her case says age is a number, you see it keeps changing from person to person, age is a number, age is not a number, age is a number, age is not a number, you can go  on.

There was Mr Iyengar, the  yoga guru, who left at the age of 95, Khushwant Singh,  journalist and author, with daily pegs lived up to 98.

My uncle, went up to 95 with his everyday peg and cigarettes.

Another who took up running at the age 95 lived up to 98. Don’t know, if he had walked, whether he would have touched 100.

People who seemingly lead a disciplined life left in their fifties.

I am not sure what works, what do not.

The other day some body asked me ” how old  are you “

I sang it for him “I am sixteen going on seventy”. 

He asked me what about the ages in between ?

“It went past in a flash” I said.

” Can you summarise your success story  ” ? He asked.

“If you succeed, you can become a leader, if you fail you can be a guide and I am a successful guide and that is my success story, of course occasionally I did lead, otherwise I would not be where I am”.

” And where are you”  he asked

” Here” I said.

“Ok, then , bye, shall catch up some other time” and he hurriedly disconnected. I am wondering what he thought, maybe you will know after reading this, this far. You don’t have to tell me.

It’s the grace of some power, we reach where we are, in addition to our efforts. Everything is energy, one energy creates another, that creates another and we keep moving. 

Death can be refined as change in form. That will make it sound less fearful.

 Science says energy can neither be created nor destroyed. It converts,   like an electrical energy converts into mechanical into thermal into.. many others. We were in some form before we were born and will change into another form when we die. There is no death, only conversions.

A tree gets cut into logs, can change into a furniture, later into ashes and live a life of ashes. Nothing leaves the earth, only conversion from one energy to another.

 

 We human’s think, we are the only species with  intelligence, more because we can communicate in English. You can verify that by listening to some of the talk shows and debates in the media.

We are part of nature, like other living species with their own type of intelligence and communication, notice the ants, birds and animals. We are the only one capable to destroy ourselves by harming , rest of them lives in harmony with the nature.

Keep learning, loving, earn as much as you can without destruction, enjoy the life journey.

Life itself has no meaning, it’s the individuals who gives meanings to it and differently.

 During my conversations with senior citizens, I got varying answers from how they make their life meaningful. 

“You have to identify areas where we can contribute, from buying vegetables to paying bills “.

Another said, ” I feel like a furniture, a broken one, at home. I don’t feel like doing anything. Sits quietly at home and keep taking naps.”” I don’t take  them, I fall asleep”.

“I know a person, who was in similar situation, he attended painting classes and is busy painting”, I told him, ” you  also take up, may be music, singing or musical instrument”.

I continued, ” take up some social work.”

” No social work, I don’t feel like moving around”.

What about the guy who said “Listen friend, don’t ask any questions, 24 hours my thoughts are on….. ( he gives me a wink), drinks in the evenings, occasionally goes to joint”

,”Where is the joint ?” I asked

” Want to come” he asked.

“No”, I said

“We are spiritual being here for human experience, don’t waste time on prayers and temples”, he continued 

The way he loud mouthed his thoughts and action with gestures, left me in splits.

His philosophy, no secrets in mind, the secret of  health.

Bindas guy, may be touching 80 was in a senior position in a company. It takes all sorts to make the world. I warned, don’t let any old #metoo cases surface at the . old age.

Coming back to me.

Living in a great era, experienced lot of changes, from cyclostyle to photocopy from punch cards, 8 KiloB floppy disks to storages in TetraB,  standing in ques for hours to a few clicks, snail mails to instant communication, analog to digital life, decade to decade, centuries to centuries, status to status, walk to work to work to walk and hazaar such things.

Feels like GOD because people remember me when they need something from me, rest of the time I do not exist for them.

A reminder, I have plenty of advises in stock lying unused, you are welcome to take any of them

I am happy because I have decided to be. 

If you think this post  have said nothing for you to carry, please go back and read between the lines and still nothing, then I am sorry, age is not a number.

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This happened three days ago and I am having a birthday week. Today in Bangalore