Recently, I made a visit to the nearby old age home which instigated me to share the insights and how we could provide for our senior citizens and help them lead an abundant life.
My conversations with my grandma have always been spellbinding and revealing. I have always remained in awe of her ability to express stories, like most of us, I got to hear about the elderly life in a different way! There are experiences that we share from our holidays, so why not hear it from them? Are they able to find equal happiness and satisfaction from us? Are we being good listeners or simply gleaning over the matter?
Here comes my interruption with the idea that seems “eccentric.”
My interaction with many such people made me realise the very fact that they are just like us! There are hearts that beat along to AR Rahman, who are keen on knowing what our new age actors have to present, who still admire Rafi and Yesudas, who are keen on knowing about what our superstars have got up with their new upcoming work, who would also like to hum to tracks from movies from their time, who would love to get along with selfies, who would love making food and serve it with love. And all these realisations racked over my brain again when my grandma was presented with a smartphone!
For this generation, a day without their smartphones becomes unimaginable! Aside the continuous debate whether it is a boon or bane, they do play a pivotal role in our life. For example, our morning alarm clock, applications, surfing on the web, to the news, messages, study groups, gaana (music). But, what about our old ones? Are they supposed to sit still and suffer as victims of age-old soap operas?!
Life started changing for the better for my grandma after she received her smartphone. She used to complain of not getting attention from her children and grandchildren and became very low-spirited. Having taken a little bit of time to teach her, she immediately got a grasp of her needs on the phone. She started enjoying video calls on a daily basis with her daughter abroad, she found bliss in the smiling emojis and the memorable songs of her time, and in exploring various recipes across the globe – all at her fingertips.
Old age demands more involvement, interaction, travel and engagements with various activities. Why not encourage improved technology and facilities for their betterment? It may even just be programmes to promote awareness about gadget usage, or making software which is much simpler to make use of, keeping in mind their peculiar wants. These could be some breakthrough pieces following the pathline of the famous saying, “necessity is the mother of invention.”
Just like the coin which has two sides, I believe that practicality and planning do not go on par all of a sudden, and follies do lie apart, but with constant effort, and improvisation, the ‘better’ is surely predicted!