Still Working After Sixty!

Majid Al Suleimany -
www.majidall.com -

Before I start I would like to apologise for a few weeks missed articles! Frankly and truthful speaking I was not in the mood! You see I have thought that things have really changed — but in reality they have not! Forgive me for being a sucker — and a naive person too — forgetting I had read Animal Farm by George Orwell — as my literature study book many times! I forgot also I wrote the article 12 years ago titled — Sorry Sir, You Are Over 50! when I was looking for a job in HR after collapse of my Consultancy business post early retirement!
You see I was trying hard to get a Hire Purchase loan for replacing my old 8 years old Toyota Camry — and I went with cup in hand to all the Financial places — but vehemently rejected — even by the so— called Islamic ones — because as I was told — I was 65! It is better for me not to trouble anyone — and go to the Saih Dhabi funeral grounds to just wait for my day to exit this world!

Anyway — back to realities — I was watching this Television Programme in Al Jazeera about The World Elderly — and was comparing about how the elderly are being treated now in different parts of the world!
No wonder the whole world is now becoming agitated, traumatised and in despair, confusion and in depression watching these news! In one of the news bit — a Syrian young woman laments cuttingly — why their families are trying to smuggle their way to Europe — with young children with them — and with the dangers of sinking overloaded boats to unwelcome ports — because she believed ‘The sea will be more merciful to us than people are here to us (another Arab country) — at least when we get to Europe — we will be human beings again! Very sad — and very much telling!
In these elderly programmes they show how they are being treated in different countries — with live examples and interviews of the old people involved! The question comes into mind what is old? Reminds me of an incident of a young Omani graduate recruited casually remarking to my then British boss that as he was 52 — he must be old! Old? retorted the good man. You think I am old at 52?
He was so upset that I had to use my best persuasion skills to make the young lad not lose on his being planned education abroad! Trust our youngsters to say whatever quickly whatever comes to their minds — without really thinking! In another incident an Omani Manager was throwing out my short listed best candidates for an Engineering job — because the top candidate was over 50 — even though the Manager himself was far much older! But that is how the cookie crumbles — as our good friends the Brits say!
Coming back to the programme — the elderly in Afghanistan fare very badly ‘as the worst place on earth to be elderly’ — as the programme points out! By tradition, the elderly are expected to be looked after by their children — and as the unemployment is so high — and people are struggling to make ends meet — the youngsters are abandoning their old ways of doing things in looking after their parents and the elderly!
As a result — the old people are forced out to go out and find menial work in order to survive. It is so disheartening and so sad to see some of them chopping wood with the feeble remaining strength they have to earn pittance money in order to survive! This is supposed to be a Muslim traditional conservative environment where people are bound to respect and esteem their parents — and look after them!
In a more secular and modern environment — we are shown in later programmes of how the elderly are being treated in South Korea — where the State has jumped in to help the elderly by incentive programmes given to the Private Sector to still recruit experienced and qualified citizens into jobs — and to continue working well after even 65 to 70s — because they want to avoid social problems in the country — when the youngster continue to fail dismally to look after their parents — and the elderly!
In one of the real sad things I have seen in my life is to see this old woman doing pittance menial job followed behind by her sick mental patient daughter — because as she (Mother) says — she will do everything she could till her last breath then to put her sick daughter into a mental institution — even if she will be looked better here than she could ever imagine!
Yet here we are complaining of such petty things — and forget that there are people out there really and really trying hard to survive with the very little things that they have! And that includes me too for that matter — for not being able to get a new car — unless my children guaranteed for me — being high risk due to age! Though I have seen so many youngsters die early than me — some from nasty road accidents — that even prompted me to write the book — Being The Safe Driver! — www.bethesafedriver.com I am very much convinced — frankly and honestly and genuinely speaking — that somewhere someplace there is someone dead set jealous at least I have an old car!!
Take Care — and Keep Smiling! Happy New Islamic Year 1435 AH.