I am not an Oldman ...

 

Age is nothing more than a state of mind, because as the old saying goes, “You're as young as you feel.” That said, some days you feel a little less young than others, and that's where having a sense of humor comes in handy. “Old age is always fifteen years older than I am.” — Oliver Wendell Holmes

I was browsing my home library of books that I have collected over time and found a real gem. This book was written by Sardar Jagjit Singh Tuli who was maternal uncle of my grandfather (Nana) - Tikka Gurcharan Singh Bedi of Dera Baba Nanak, later London, UK. 'Tuli Mamaji" as we called him, was a realtor in Delhi after partition and later settled in Manchester, UK. He met me when I migrated to UK in 1986 and fondly gifted me two books authored by him. He was a colorful figure and known for many attributes, but never realized how good was he in composing poetry in Punjabi.

Jagjit Singh Tuli 'Mamaji'

This book is titled, 'Yadaan de Ohle' meaning 'Reminiscing Pleasant Memories". I am going to share a poem in Punjabi by Tuli Mamaji titled, "Am I am Old Man?" Suddenly I found myself relating to the sentiments expressed in the poem. Please enjoy ...

Am I an Oldman?

So what if I got grey, So what if I got a denture
So what if my steps are wobbly, So what if my hands shake
So what if my vision is blurred, So what if its hard to hear
But my heart is still young, and its so hard to control it.

Neither does it resist a glass of drink
Neither does it resist admiring beauty
Neither does it stop loving
Nor does it refrains from picking a fight.

Always demands the young, what do I tell you, friend
It demands 'Laila' like a 'Majnoo' and 'Heer' like a 'Ranjha'
It wants to smell all flowers in the garden like a bumblebee
It admires young sirens like an adolescent

Even then, if someone calls me 'Old",  then you are the biggest fool of them all.

 Here is the screenshot from the original book by JS Tuli:

 “Life is pleasant. Death is peaceful. It’s the transition that’s troublesome.” ― Isaac Asimov