You are getting old and so what

You are  getting old and so what

Recreated  from Tamil essay,

P.R.Ramachander

( I am a great admirer   of Tamil writer Sujatha  and he wrote  a Tamil essay  “For   seniors Sujatha” .I have rewritten it in my  own way .,Hope Sujatha   who is in heaven will pardon me)

Within    another   few days I will be 80,

So when  I go  to the park , for a walk,

Or when I wish  birthday  to my face book   friends,

I see   that  most of them    are  younger to me.

One day I saw  a person  older than me  ,

Sitting  on the park   bench    and he asked me,

Can you  guess  how  old I am  and with a smile,

I shook my head  up  and down as I was in south.

Then I asked   the old man, can you touch,

Your nose with your middle finger and he did ,

And I asked him to shake  other  fingers  to and fro,

And he  did  and I told him , “You  are 84 years  3 months”

He was   taken aback   and asked me , “ How?”

And I told him,  for past two   days    daily  ,

I am asking  you, “How old are you?”

And you told me 84 years  , 3  months”

“I   realize    that  I am also  walking  in the same path,

As that Thatha but not    as bad as him,When I see,

Some  one on the road  I feel   I have seen him,

But I am not able  to know his name  , nor as to who he is?”

“Suppose  I am reading   a name of some thing in English,

I am not able to say  what it is?  Suppose  I am in front seat,

Of a music concert, I feel   I have heard  him some where,

And when I  asked as old man  sitting next, he scoffed at me.”

“But I was  able to remember  what Jaya Prakash  Narayan,

Told in a meeting at Hyderabad  which I attended  when,

I was  five   along with my father  and I remember,

How I used to be teased by  by parents when I was seven”

“I used to remember  how  P.U.Chinnappa  played,

Mridangam in Jagathala  prathapan  and how  THyagaraja,

BHagawathar  used to sing  in Shiva Kavi   and what  ,

My mother  fed  me   when I came back    from School.”

Slowly  I am not jealous on   any one else  , nor am I,

Chide  any way side   child and when reading Obituary,

In face book, I first check  whether  he is younger  or elder to me,

If he is elder, we feel  we have escaped and if older, we count  how many days more”

When I was  young   , I used  to have  very difficult ambitions,

But now, if I am  able to answer natures calls  in the morning,

Without   difficulty , I become elated and I feel that life,

Consists  of series   of progressive   compromises.

You may   ask, What do you want   now and I will say,

Average health of mind and body, being able to live ,

Without troubling others, not boating   too much of my old days,

Not hurting others, ability to  talk   sweetly, Having  pity on others,

A sense  of humour, ability to do minor helps to children,

Not getting upset of not getting   the food  which your   wife used to give ,

Not getting  upset   when our children   not telling  everything  in their life,

And so on  and so on  but  these  appear   to be a senseless  dreams