The end of the road
By: K S SPillai
Nobody wants to live beyond a certain age despite the availability of wonder drugs and the saying that being buried at a good old age and full of years is a sign of divine favour. It is difficult to imagine someone wishing to live like Methuselah, one who lived long, dying at 969 years of age, according to the Bible.
People about to retire from service are a case in point. Though scriptures say that old age is God’s reward for godliness, one is usually apprehensive as his date of retirement approaches.
The security he enjoyed till then will soon become a thing of the past for him and his dependents. Getting a similar job somewhere else will also become a dream as many young and well-qualified people are there vying with one another for the slot.
Some people can retire without worry as they will get a monthly pension, and the medical expenses will be reimbursed. They can also die peacefully as their spouses will get similar but a little reduced benefits after their demise. The trauma is more when the employer is a private entity not bound by these rules and the aged employee with age-related diseases has to depend on his children.
The problem becomes serious if the retired employee’s spouse dies some years after his retirement and has to live by the rules imposed by his son and his family.
Social media are full of advice to the old about the do’s and don’ts. My well-wishers had started to shower me with such advice months before my retirement. Some had asked me to plan my post-retirement life meticulously. Regular exercise is a must, all of them advised.
They cautioned me about the ills of idle life, citing examples of people getting all kinds of diseases soon after they ceased to be active. Aware of my habits, some told me that the intellectuals should continue to read and write.
I was also warned not to poke my nose in all matters. They asked me to control my tongue in speaking and eating, not converting myself into a permanent fixture at home recording everything like a CCTV camera, and not to criticize people. They also asked me not to refer to my long experience, and offer unsolicited advice. Another advice was not to pester my neighbours with frequent visits and not to refer to the ‘good old days’ frequently.
It was also suggested to travel to popular destinations inside and outside the country. Many are eager to do so, taking care to splash photographs of all events on social media platforms. I have refrained from following this advice, agreeing with CesarePavese, who said, “Travelling is brutality. It forces you to trust strangers and to lose sight of all that familiar comfort of a home and friends. You are constantly off balance.”
It is common knowledge that health and wealth are two major prerequisites of a happy retired life. One would be lucky to enjoy both reasonably.
One of the advices I liked most was ‘to play deaf and dumb’ at home. I have now added playing blind to the list. This strategy has not only brought mental peace to me, but the other members of the family also seem to be equally happy with it. Three small monkeys made of plaster of Paris – one covering its ears, the second its eyes and the third its mouth with their hands – occupy a prominent place on my table.
Of various stories about the aged, I also liked the one about a man who had temporarily lost his hearing ability, and people soon began to bare their minds before him fearlessly.
He received good treatment from a doctor friend who restored his hearing ability. Suspecting some of his close relatives, he had kept his recovery a secret and requested the doctor also to do likewise. The result was that he changed his will soon, bequeathing all his property to a destitute children’s home.
(The author is a retired professor of English. A regular contributor to ‘The Kashmir Vision’, his articles and short stories have appeared in various national and international publications)
