Senior Citizens or Secondary Citizens?

"Those were the days my friends...we thought they'd never end...we'd sing and dance forever and a day...we'd live the life we choose...we'd fight and never lose...for we were young and sure to have our ways..." As I heard Mary Hopkins, a popular pop singer of the swinging 60's croon to the chart buster, I thought about all the times when I was too trapped into my present to see what awaits me and what awaits each one of us.When we are young, the world is at our feet. We are invincible - our main issues revolve around which movies will release this weekend? Where will we get the best bargain on a pair of Levis jeans? The vigour and energy of youth more than compensate for the minor upheavals we face in our day to day lives. We get up in the mornings - RUSH! Rush to our offices, rush back home, rush to our children/ spouses / parents and then rush to go off to sleep. Life seems one gigantic blur. And then you see your first grey hair and you are taken aback. But well, that happens to everyone you think. Nothing a dash of hair colour cannot take care of? And a few years go by. And then one day as you rush up the stairs your knee creaks like an unoiled piece of machinery and you suddenly have to pause for breath. The wrinkles appear soon after. The miracle age defying creams just don't work. The face gets craggier. The lines harden. The temples grey and the chin droops. The bags and the crowfeet under your eyes continue their descent till you look at your bony, wrinkled hands and wonder are these really yours? Life zooms ahead for your children and their children but for you it has come to a stand still. Suddenly there is nowhere to rush, suddenly life is about aching bones, rising blood pressure, rising sugar, doctor's appointments and God forbid if you are unlucky there is a pronounced feeling of being unwanted.You repeat things for the umpteenth number of times and then repeat it again a minute later to bored grandchildren who soon disappear. Your bladder becomes weak and your spirit weaker.
You have just contracted the worse disease that often accompanies OLD AGE - Loneliness.

Roughly 15 years ago I visited a home for the aged in Bandra. It was a social service endeavour organized by my school. The memory of that trip is still fresh in my mind. I can vividly recall the immaculate lawns, the clean hall (mainly used for socializing), the nuns in their crisp, starched hoods and the deep, sad eyes. Every time I walked into a room I was hit by a sense of despondency. The smell of medicines, half-eaten food and bedpans assailed my nostrils. Ironically everytime I walked into a room I was met by a pair of hopeful eyes. One lady got up with a start as she thought her children had come to visit her. Only to sink back disappointed. While distributing some snacks I distinctly recollect an old woman who beckoned me with a nod and said-
"I did not get the green plant."
Confused I asked "I beg your pardon Aunty."
"I did not get the green plant that you are giving everyone" and she pointed at a girl distributing those mysterious 'green plants.'
I took a 'green plant' and handed it to the woman. She smiled and said thanks as she held a big, green banana in her hands, cherishing it as though it was her most treasured possession. The innocence and vulnerability hit me like a strong force.
Yesterday I visited a quaint restaurant in South Mumbai. A small screen had been put up for the IPL fans. The crowd was young, feisty and could not get enough of the excitement. A lone, aged waiter rushed around trying to man an entire section on his own. He fumbled while speaking, he dropped cutlery , he confused orders,and repeated orders constantly so as to not forget it. He repeated orders cause he was no longer sure that the order he had written was correct or not. There was sheer frustration on his face as he tried to manage irate customers. I requested for a Sprite. He confirmed 4 times if I wanted Sprite or 7 Up. As the crowd grew, he started perspiring, the tension evident beneath the facade of a welcoming smile. A group of young, 'supposedly' well educated boys,constantly harassed and mocked at the old man. The finicky one confused him further by stating how he wanted his steak to be cooked.When the waiter walked away hassled they all had a hearty laugh at his expense and continued to mock at him. A group of youngsters walked away enraged as he had not served them soon enough. Watching a match, guzzling down pitchers of beer is serious business you see. Nobody can sit around waiting for an old man who takes a bit too long to serve that plate of fries. We got a game to watch. We got a girl to impress. Right.
The above is one of the many humiliating experiences that senior citizens are subjected to day in and day after, the details of which are all over our tabloids. The question is that do we realize that one day we too will not be able to hold a glass of water steadily in our hands? If we are unlucky, we will be sick, lonely and depressed. If we are lucky we wont live to see 70.