Growing Old

The two friends had finished dinner. They were seated behind the windows of the cafe from where they could see the boulevard full of people.


One of them, Henry Simon, sighed periodically and continued chewing his nails a good length again.

The other, Peter Cornier was older, a venerable connoisseur, had thrust himself into a somber introspection and in no way was prepared to even twitch a single muscle. At least not after a dinner so profound!

“A penny for your thoughts minister!” A large stout woman broke the silence from the bar stand. Madame Toi, known profoundly as an affable, noisy but caring woman from who people generally preferred staying away. “That’s fine you don’t need to reply”

“Just wondering if you have ever heard that bartender talking of growing old. If at the age of forty Tim sees life the same way as that at the age of twenty, he did, then wasted the twenty years in between. And again you have the bishop talking of growing gracefully! (Belch) Bless them! Mother!”



“As for me, my friend, I have grown old without perceiving it the least in the world. I was always gay, a jolly fellow, vigorous and all the rest. Now as one looks at himself each day in the mirror he doesn’t perceive the work that age is accomplishing, because it is slow and regular and modifies his visage so gradually that the transition is unseen. In order to reckoning it would be necessary to go six months without looking at ourselves; and then what a blow!



“Growing up is an awful long voyage”

And so went on there long discussion regarding ageing.



~*~

The idea was austere but consequences far from guesses. They knew what was left of their lives was merely a few years, say a ten to twenty years. After which they would just leave the earth without leaving any proof of their existence, not counting the bones they leave behind in their graves. And so after a nightlong discussion about the absurdity of the idea, it was decided.







They each made a list of all the things they desired to do but either didn’t have enough courage or enough time or other ninny reasons. They decided a day when they would just forget they are old and just not care about anything else. They thought since they were old how did anything mattered when a few years there after they would die and they doubted if anyone would ever remember them at all !!!



So on Monday Henry decided to get a burger on his way back home. He jumped on the pavement making people stare. He changed the color of his wig, got a striking shade of tie and whistled at Madame Toi. Earlier that morning, Cornier too had tried out something he wanted to do earlier. He spent 2 hours before the mirror and tried every possible outfit from his son’s wardrobe.

They wanted to do something eventful. There was a sudden feeling of youth in them, a desire to conquer the world. They started having childlike desires. They spent more time dreaming, boating, fishing and other idle jobs.







The story is not complete...