Why people fear ageing?

Is old-age a dreadful dream?

More than any of those fearsome diseases, dreadful nightmares, monstrous animals and equally dangerous humans that lurk around, what people fear most these days is their age, the innate fear of growing old and getting wrinkles all over their body. I have more than a handful reasons to say this, as I’ve witnessed many incidents where people speak of their age with immense agony and tremble that are often clearly visible. Their heart skips a beat when they are asked about their age, and that’s more than funny to watch. Does that sound a bit cruel? But, I do find it funny to see how people who frantically try their best to hide their age, or put up the mask of false youthfulness that would flake off any moment. But yet they cling on to those fragile masks and cover themselves, in their anxious effort to hide their real age. Be it man or woman, a person who crosses thirty finds it a bit hard to disclose their age, or to reveal that nature is slowly draining off the youthfulness and vigor from their body.

When looked upon carefully, I think men are equally, perhaps more scared of getting aged, and not only women, but men too equally lean-on to the costly artificialities, in order to fake youthfulness. When women fear of losing their looks, I keep wondering about the fears that men have, when wrinkles start showing up and when grey hairs heartlessly dominate the luscious black ones. I think they would have insecurities about their manliness, I mean by all means, as men would be more than scared about the loss of their libido and virility; rather than the flawless looks that adorned them during their youth. Sometimes I keep wondering whether they are scared of the fact that they are nearing death. But that’s just stupidity, as death has hardly anything to do with age. Death is inevitable, but can happen to anyone at any point of time, no matter whether that person is young or old. So it should not trigger a sense of fear or insecurity in one’s mind, and initiate the fear of getting aged. Like women, growing older may also make men worry about an uncertain future filled with endless list of ailments and bodily worries. Another factor that they would be scared about will be their financial stability. I would call this lack of planning and meticulousness in life. If a person lives fifty years in ultimate luxury and spend the rest of the life in pennilessness, I would call him a fool, as he had enough to save for his old age, but carelessly splurged it without any planning.

Is balding a nightmare that scares men from getting old? I don’t think hair loss would be a matter of fear these days, as more than a couple of our iconic male film stars , who are in their twenties and thirties, are almost bald, and yet have a huge fan following. Going grey or baldness should not scare one anymore, as both start showing up much early these days, perhaps due to the unhealthy lifestyle and food habits that we are forced to follow. To be frank, I find men with a little of grey hair attractive and seductive. Such men, although very rare in number, are the testimonies of the fact that cosmetic fears have hardly anything to do with personality.

The muscle sag, or pot belly in plain language, that visibly shows off its arrival, is not just the sign of old age, as I have seen many young men, especially those nerdy techies, with more than pot sized bellies. Pot belly is never inevitable, as long as one is ready to work out regularly and maintain a fit and healthy body, and for this reason belly size would never become the trademark of old age.

But not very man is bald, impotent, or penniless, which means if you life carefully planned, and look after yourself, while continuing to have fun, you can definitely age gracefully and not scarily.

Anti aging creams, scrubs, and other beauty products that guarantee to fight the natural aging process have almost monopolized the market these days, and both men and women are so crazily addicted to them, thus living under the false notion that they would hinder the natural process of growth and ageing. What are they really up to? Are they really foolish enough to believe the promises of the cosmetic companies, or are they trying to remain so, forcefully forgetting the fact that ageing can never be stopped, no matter whatever they try and do. Why do they do it? Is it just because of the fear that they would soon be deprived of the luminous youth that they've been proud of all these years? The thought of finding one selves with wrinkles, in grey hair, is very evident in such people, as they desperately lean on cosmetics, surgeries, and whatever possible to retain the luminosity of their skin.

Ageing is a natural process, and will keep happening, no matter however hard we try to avoid it. So why not age gracefully, rather than being frantic, depressed, and worried about it?Ageing also means clearing out all the mess and messy people and chiseling down to the very few that you really need in your life, that are important, that really matter.

Age is what you want it to be. It’s not just a number that should keep scaring you. It should be the satisfaction that you've lived every moment of life to the fullest, and are happy walking forward in life. The desperateness to walk backwards only shows the lack of courage and strength of will.

Mealtime entertainments that I cannot avoid

I am not much sure about the number of people who can relate themselves to this bizarre habit of mine, but I am sure there will be at least a handful of likeminded people who can relate to me and my habit of seeking those few minutes of entertainment during meal times, be it on T.V or on those random YouTube videos. In the absence of T.V in my hostel room, the only the option that I can lean on to is my laptop, so that I can pick one of those mindless YouTube videos to compensate for the lack of television. There is absolutely no coherence in choosing programmes or videos, and I don’t really watch them all completely. What I choose most of the times will be the previous episodes of some of my favourite crime shows or those less than ten minutes long Tom and Jerry cartoons, as I need it only for just less than twenty minutes till I finish munching on my meal. So if you ask me the logic behind watching the same episodes over and over again, I have nothing to say, other than the fact that I need a meal time entertainment, no matter whether I’ve seen it once, twice, thrice, or more than a dozen of times. I don’t watch it entirely, but shut it off the moment I finish my food.

Once dad was so pissed off with this obscure addiction of mine and forcefully made me stop watching television and YouTube videos while having food. More than his fear of seeing me glued to them, it was his concern about my health that made him take a stubborn decision of taking away perhaps the most delicious ‘dish’ that cherished during my entire meal time. I was more than sad to hear his sudden serious decision, and pleaded many times to reconsider it. But dad was so serious like never before and he gave deaf years to my almost tearful words. It was hard, but I had to do it.

I started becoming g unusually quiet during meal times, and my entire family knew what the reason is. However they wanted me to get rid of something that was a part of my life since childhood, and hence paid no attention to the outpour of melancholy that visibly reflected on my face.

But I saw dad becoming a little lenient after a few days, and granted me the permission to watch T.V. during mealtime, but only in his presence, and made sure that I switch the T.V off and get up immediately after having food. Yes, my dad can never see me walking around with that sad face! I was overjoyed to know that my parents are ready to give me access to the ‘tastiest curry’ that makes my mealtime extra special.

Now that I am in hostel most of the time, I can easily make use of mealtimes and enjoy watching random videos on YouTube and enjoy my food. Even though I always make sure to stop them right the very next moment I finish my meals, I am yet to try and get rid of this addition of watching something or the other while having food. Dad keeps reminding me about the possible chances of over eating, but I don’t think I eat more than what my stomach can contain. So the possibility of overeating hardly scares me as much as it scares him.

More than this weird habit of mine, what may perhaps surprise him and others who know me will be uncompromised willingness to eat whatever I am provide with, if have the TV or laptop switched on and kept right next to me. It makes me “obedient”, “passive”, and “non complaining”, and I easily accept whatever I am given to eat. Both my mind and my taste buds are more than happy with having something to watch, and this may perhaps be the reason why I get distracted from the not so likable food that I am served.

Should I keep a curb on this habit of mine? I am not sure whether I should, as it doesn’t in any way harm my health or well being. I don’t indulge in mindless eating, paying zero attention to what I am putting in to my mount. But, taking my dad’s advice a bit more seriously than before, now a days I am trying my best to avoid the habit of watching and eating or choose healthy and portioned meals.

But if someone tells me that TV programs or commercials would encourage me to eat more, I would just laugh it off.