old age

dreaming of youth

through cracked glasses

old age in a corner

fear of the end

each grey hair

reminiscent of the passing years

the end i fear

the muddy mirror

it is me

is it

staring at me

through the muddy mirror

or

is my skin muddy

and wrinkled

I think

for

the last reflection of me

was surely through

a looking glass

which was cleaner

The Old Couch.

In response to The Daily Post’s writing prompt: “Wronged Objects.”

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/wronged-objects/

Hey you, sitting on me tight

Move your ass now

It has been generations 

Time to take a bow

 

I am the oldest couch in the house

Pay me some respect

Put down your feet son

You have some manners I bet

 

And you dear madam

Teach everyone a thing or two

At least dust me once a while

After all I have been so true.

 

Treat me like an elder

And I will serve you right back

Even though I am an age old couch

Some emotions in me are intact

Age Is Just A Number…12 reasons you should wait to get old.

Age is just a number they say. Ok, done. You may grow old in body but not in mind. Fine.Your body may ache, the mind may forget and you may be depressed…but age is just a number Ok, agreed.

There are benefits and drawbacks.

The Benefits.

You can get away with murder. No not literally,but there are many situations where many concessions are awarded to the senior citizens.

1. Train and plane tickets are cheaper.
2. You shall always be offered seats in a public place.
3. You can conveniently afford to forget birthdays,anniversaries ….blame it on senile dementia. So you can forget to give gifts.
4. Your birthdays will be celebrated with great pomp and show.
5. Dress up a little and post your picture on social media sites. You will surely receive more than 100 likes, leave aside the compliments.
6. Go for a morning walk,control your diabetes, and you will always be complimented on being so well maintained.
7. Write a blog and you will always be a successful blogger, for very few of your age manage to do it.
8. You shall receive innumerable gifts, as now you even have grandchildren.
9. You can relax and enjoy all family events secretly sipping your wine, as you are too old to do anything else.
10. Sleeping during the day is a luxury you can indulge in, as you have insomnia.
11. Can say no to sex anytime you are not in a mood…after all your age doesn’t allow it!
12. You can ogle at the younger lot without suspicion….maybe he /she reminds you of your granddaughter/grandson.(you can hug them too.)

So I think aching bones, wrinkles, dementia and insomnia are a very small price to pay for all the great benefits listed above.

What say!!!

HAPPY OLD AGE

Visions Of Life.

Today I was woken up at 3am by my husband. He was in pain. A kidney stone had blocked the ureter causing him extreme discomfort. I gave him an injection of a painkiller. He slept for an hour and again the pain was back. So we thought of him getting admitted in the hospital. It was then my nightmare started. As I packed his stuff , he was writhing in pain. It was scary looking at him helpless. A tall well built man, he is always in charge of every situation. But seeing him so dependent made me extremely uncomfortable. As we sat in the car, staring out if the window I could see various visions of life, life which others were leading and I had lead. Life which others were leading and I would lead.

Mothers happily playing with their children.

School going kids,full of life. All crowding at an ice cream shop and completely unaware of what was going around them.

Then there were young boys and girls hanging out together. There was romance in the air around them.

From across the road I could see married couples arguing.

There were bored shopkeepers living the mundane existence.

An old man limped in front of our car. Quickly I applied the brakes, barely missing him.

And then there was me. Stuck in a strange situation at yet another stage in life. Where had the playfulness of childhood gone. When did we stop being romantic. What happened to all those years of marriage. What I could see was my future in the old man . A shudder went down my spine. We live our lives mechanically, without pausing to enjoy the moments. without taking out a minute to stand and stare. When the glorious years of youth go by and the twilight years come, we are busy in our daily grind. We never stop to smell a flower. Look at a rainbow or breathe in the scent of wet earth.

My rigamarole did not end there. Getting my husband admitted in the hospital was another nightmare. As I walked the perfectly panelled corridors of the hospital all I could see was illness, debility and old age. Obviously, it was a hospital and that was what I was supposed to see. But when all is good and we are busy in our lives , not once this vision crosses our mind. So much is going around in the world around us and do we bother?

We cannot avoid this reality of life ,but we can at least be a part of lives of others who need us.

Make a pledge to help the old,care for the ill and be a support to the infirm. All of us at some point of time will go into a state of decrepitude. So prepare yourself for the inevitable. Its better that way.

Nothing lasts forever.

“What is this life if full of care; we have no time to stand and stare.” These famous lines from the poem Leisure by W H Davis sum up my attitude towards life.

BE HAPPY ALWAYS

P.S. The husband has a surgery today.I write this sitting outside his room as the doctors examine him.

        Hope everything turns out fine.