Does Age Matter?

By Yash Desai

This question has been contemplated for centuries now with a plethora of debates raging over this  very topic, a question so timeless that this universal dilemma has been around since the dawn of  humanity itself. Life is like a colossal canvas. Every thought, expression, action, and feeling is a  paintbrush stroke on that canvas. At the end of the day, you paint a picture. A picture meticulously  mottled with layers, shades of who you are. Every single human being has their own picture and  people spend their entire life trying to refine their picture, to be satisfied with it. It is time that  cultivates that picture, that shows you who you are. 

This question inexplicably drew me towards it. It begged me to ask a few questions about where I am  now, whether I am content with my identity, my journey so far, and if I was truly proud of the picture  I have made up until now. While this truly pensive thought enveloped me, I realized, before falling  into yet another rabbit hole, whether I should even be worrying about that now. In life, there’s  always a ‘right’ time to do something. A right time to go to school, the right time to start driving, the  right time to go to college and the right time to get married. This supposed ‘perfect time for  something is always so daunting to us. In this rush to do everything at a pace dictated by societal  norms, we forget who we are, our passions, interests, and hobbies. However, there are two sides to  the coin. We could argue that we haven’t explored ourselves, haven’t found out who we are, and  haven’t been close to finishing our picture. This is why, we should take accountability and onus at a  later age rather than taking risks. 

When one gateway closes, a myriad of others open. The other side of the coin aligns with the fact  that even though we are taking risks, we realize who we are, we understand what we want earlier,  and are thus more content with that canvas at the end of our lives. While writing this essay, a quote  captured my attention. “What makes old age so sad is not that our joys, but our hopes cease” – Jean Paul. This truly encapsulates a pressing truth faced by all of humanity. What makes a child truly a  child is its ability to be free-spirited, to stray away from the fear of the rapidly ticking clock, and to  truly enjoy life to the fullest with no fear. The thing that fears us the most, is our own mortality.  

Life is a desert. At a young age, we are brought up admiring society’s mirage of cruel expectations.  We grow up as adults, trying our best to fit into that mould of lies, those dreams of others we are  supposed to feel content fulfilling. It is only a truly free person, impregnable from the doom of time’s  curse who makes their own path and finds their own oasis, somebody who truly paints their own  picture. 

In Greek mythology, there are three beings known simply as the fates. One spins a thread that  depicts our life and the birth of another human, another twists the thread around depicting various  ups and downs of life. The last one cuts the thread, signalling the end of a lifetime. An adult will  always fear the scissor, shivering at the impending doom decided by a casual snip of fate. However, it  is only a child that can frolic about without a care in the world, unbeknownst of their inevitable end while enjoying life to the fullest.

By Yash Desai