Cheer Up!
An octogenarian in clean but tattered saffron
clothes, visits our home once in two weeks. He sings Kannada
Dasa songs, dances in ecstasy and accepts
whatever we offer. He demands nothing. He has no possessions except his
tattered bag, full of prasad from various
temples he visits. He is fragile, bent, old and quite forgetful, but tireless
and always cheerful.
Four or five
days a month, he travels to far off temples on piligrimage by train and night buses.
Two weeks in a year he goes to Banaras or Badrinath. Rest of the time he is on his feet wearing a
pair of worn-out flip-flops (rubber chappals),
covering a radius of four to five kms . Come rain or shine we can hear the melodious rings of
the bronze discs in his hands, and open our doors to him.
I often wonder what drives this man. Poverty is written all over him, yet the radiant smile that greets everyone, never
vanishes from his face. I am sure it is his devotion to the Supreme Being. An
interest in life keeps him going.
We meet so many
retired people who lock themselves up in their home, complaining of some malady
or other and never venture out unless some work is involved. Many feel vacant,
useless and feel neglected by everyone. Such people get depressed, develop an
inferiority complex and often try covering it up with anger or arrogance. This
is the reason they lose interest in going out or meeting people, and people
lose interest in them.
Most of us
seniors have lived a full and responsible life. The silver age is the time to
sit back and enjoy. Dale Carnegie says - "Little things worry us and eat
us up like a giant tree, which has withstood the onslaught of thunder,
lightning and storms, but is eaten up by small beetles''.
We must
cultivate the habit of taking small irritants lightly. Many times situations
don't make us happy or unhappy but how we react to it does. So whatever happens
around us, we must try and learn to take it lightly and only then can we relax.
Living in joint family or alone, in life's December, one must become very selfish when
it comes to anything that affects one's peace of mind. Detachment seems to be
the tool.
So how do we practice the detachment which
Hindu Dharma preaches? It does not mean detaching oneself from the family and
becoming a Sanyasi. Sanyas
is not merely wearing orange clothes. It means detached attachment. Not
reacting to circumstances and controlling our thoughts and mind. Watch or
witness the circumstances like a third person. Learn to enjoy beauty in all His
creations. Be it a flower, architecture or an innocent child's laughter.
Most seniors allow their mind and body to
deteriorate with negative thoughts and inactivity. When a bicycle is lying in
the garage for a year, it collects rust and does not function unless the rust
is removed, and the bike is serviced. Our mind and body are similar to it. We
must keep our body and mind in tune by exercising the body and activating the
mind.
Keep the mind engaged in some activity or
hobby like:
- Reading
- Writing
- Music
- Painting
- Photography
- Calligraphy
- Traveling
- Collecting rare items
- Repairing things at home
- Cooking
- Prayers, Meditation, Chanting
- Cleaning
- Chopping vegetables
- Gardening
- Light sport, Yoga etc.
- Travelling.
- Bird watching.
- Boating.
- Walking.
You can be a real help to your loving spouse
by helping with daily chores. There is no shame in it. In fact, it is very
touching to see an elderly couple helping each other.
The list of things to do that can bring back
the vitality to your life is endless. But the best thing to do is go back in
memory to your school days and recollect what your hobby was at the time and
try to pursue it. The whole point is to retain the mental faculty without
deterioration. There is no age limit for
learning. There are language classes all around. One could pick up any one of
them and join. This way one meets lots of people and gets to interact.
Otherwise it is very easy to be stuck alone at home and go into depression,
Dementia, senility and Alzheimer's.
Beware! This does not mean competing with
youngsters, but accepting one’s age and proceeding accordingly. Using our
will power we must stop failing health. Daily practice of Pranayama and Yogasana gives seniors a new lease of life and
teaches one to face each day happily. Dean Hawkes says - "For every
ailment under the sun there is a remedy, or there is none. If there be one, try
to find it; if there be none; never mind it.''
Keeping oneself active and cheerful is the
secret of good life in the silver age.
