Saturday, January 08, 2005
Back after a break
Well,it's nice to be blogging again.
We didn't celebrate New Year's eve in our customary fashion of inviting all our relatives to the place. A death, a cancer treatment and a 92-year old uncle of my wife, Madhuri, disappearing for good stalled the usual celebration. So we had a quiet get-together with my in-laws.
I decided to give myself a new look and got a hair cut after the style of my fav footballer, Zinedine Zidane of France and Real Madrid. My barber hesitated and couldn't stop grinning at the close cropped crown of a 54-year old man. On two earlier occasions, the barber's hesitation had rubbed on to me and I had denied myself the pleasure. This time I pushed and got what I wanted, much to the amusement of all colleagues and students and consternation of my wife.
The world will think what it will and that's ok. I feel good and that is important. A young student presented me with sunglasses saying it would look good on me. I went to Mumbai and was mistaken for an army officer. Not bad. But the grey part of the pate prompted a lot of people on the street and in the train and the bus to call me uncle.
I still get taken aback at this reminder of advancing age, since I continue to think of myself as a young man. At the most middle aged. But certainly not old. Then I told myself, enjoy the respect and consideration which comes along with the uncle bit without your asking.
That's one thing I need to learn: enjoy and not shrink from the courtesies extended by others.
We didn't celebrate New Year's eve in our customary fashion of inviting all our relatives to the place. A death, a cancer treatment and a 92-year old uncle of my wife, Madhuri, disappearing for good stalled the usual celebration. So we had a quiet get-together with my in-laws.
I decided to give myself a new look and got a hair cut after the style of my fav footballer, Zinedine Zidane of France and Real Madrid. My barber hesitated and couldn't stop grinning at the close cropped crown of a 54-year old man. On two earlier occasions, the barber's hesitation had rubbed on to me and I had denied myself the pleasure. This time I pushed and got what I wanted, much to the amusement of all colleagues and students and consternation of my wife.
The world will think what it will and that's ok. I feel good and that is important. A young student presented me with sunglasses saying it would look good on me. I went to Mumbai and was mistaken for an army officer. Not bad. But the grey part of the pate prompted a lot of people on the street and in the train and the bus to call me uncle.
I still get taken aback at this reminder of advancing age, since I continue to think of myself as a young man. At the most middle aged. But certainly not old. Then I told myself, enjoy the respect and consideration which comes along with the uncle bit without your asking.
That's one thing I need to learn: enjoy and not shrink from the courtesies extended by others.
