Social Ageing
AGING WISDOM
by Sheela Kanagasabai
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My friends are hopeful human ‘wonder-bras’ – uplifting and supportive golden girls. Age has embraced us all slowly and retained our youthful glow. Every fortnight, we come together in extension of our female friendship, and through laughter we celebrate our age for its positive gifts - wisdom, maturity and experience. More often then not, it is our shared humour and humanity on life’s tutorials that have knitted all into warm, witty and wise beings.
After a riotous discussion of deficiencies, we acknowledge that some of us live in an anxiety induce age where when we scrutinize ourselves and fail to match up to the cover girl image, our middle aged, wrinkled, lined and experienced self would loose respect for the age of perfectibility. However, I believe that our own mothers have managed to teach us through example what it is to be courageous and what true and selfless love and loyalty are all about. It would do us all justice to draw inspiration from real women who are leading successful professional and personal lives. They epitomize the saying that we can be beautiful at any age, size or situation.
Our strength comes from resilience and survival of the tough kind. Real women should be considered as trailblazer, noble dissident, a champion for women’s rights. We are the key players in a move for change without the red lipstick, false eyelashes and seductress perfume. Our power suit in the form of mental endurance makes us feel undefeated with the ability to achieve anything. Our sisterhood from different mother of our generation, gives us the privilege to be exclusive in our shared experiences. Fame and fortune may never insulate many amongst us from raw hurt by abuse, infidelity and adversity. Yet we continue to firmly focus on the future without looking back. The lines on our foreheads and the wrinkles in our smiles are testament to the fact that none of us have ever held on to a plan nor have been open to what is ahead. Going with your instincts and hope for a positive outcome, has always been our honest approach to life’s unlikely forces of change.
There are so many interpretations of female power with or without the painted war-face façade. After child bearing years, every woman would attest to the fact that the Wonder Women physical challenges which depicts love, protection equality and justice are real. Every day you run, jump and juggle like a battle scene choreography and by night fall you are still sleep walking or floating like a hooting owl. There is no need to scarf down potatoes and pasta, or protein shakes with peanut butter and banana to maintain your already ordinary, scruffy and unhealthy appearance. I am a firm believer in that women should embrace their bodies as nature made them, free of shame or embarrassment.
Our nervous energy sometimes makes us believe that we have emotional indigestion from the many different roles we play. And through it all, we may turn out to be proud parents and care-givers who have raised and natured grounded lives. Hopefully this would enable the transfer of respect, conscience, care for others and the ability to strive via exemplary actions. It is so important to have this sisterly circle of unity which fosters sharing and indulging on a personal level.
A model for restraint, my nutritional needs are derived from a supplement of friendship. Studies have shown that a network of relationships, including both family and friends, allows the elderly to live longer than others. Giving, receiving and showing generosity all have positive effects and may stall the aging process. And while none of my friends are prepared to abandon fish oil capsules or yoga just yet, we conquer that the only way to avoid the ravages of aging is to die young. None of us feels any older, so we hate realising that we are. Deep inside, we still want to continue enjoying sinful chocolate fudge brownies with our milky tea, wear skinny jeans under muffin tops, discover crow’s feet that map into laughter lines, and get baffled by our silver hairs. Ironically, a sense of humour and laughter is the best way to stay young and love life.
Having yet another girly get together has once again boosted our healthy dispositions and released our growing despairs. Life experiences (joys as well as sorrows), no doubt is a worthy fitness program. At the end of the gathering, we unanimously toasted our wine glasses to living, caring, loving, enjoying, creating and appreciating a fulfilling life.