You know you are growing old when ....

I was invited to be part of a team to facilitate a workshop for adolescent girls. We started off with a tense team of teenagers staring at us like we had two heads. That is when it struck me that I am certainly growing old if I am now the facilitator and not the participant.

When did I stop being an adolescent? I mean there was no warning or anything apart from a few aches and pains here and there. Well, those years are gone. As I looked at their shinning but very timid faces, I knew exactly how they felt. I used to be so timid, a mouse was more outgoing. I hoped that nobody would see me especially the teachers who were likely to pick on me. I got so good, they sometimes forgot I was even then.  But today, I wanted to reassure those young ladies that like me, they would soon outgrow it or be forced to be well spoken.

All the mushy stuff aside, I did not really understand their slang, didn't quite know the celebrities they said they admired, nor did I understand why some of them were dressed like they were older than their age. Goodness me, I am slowly turning into my mother. Yap, old age is definitely setting in.

But standing there and having something to share with them, made me proud that I could now stand up in front of such a judgmental and giggly group and impart "wisdom". Let's hope they picked up something I said as well as what I wanted them to see from our conduct.

I live in an urban area that is actually a rural area

I live a few kilometers from the Capital City. One would expect that I have access to all the comforts living in a city would offer. Well in a country like ours, the comforts include, horrible roads, slums, semi permanent shop structures and leaders who seem to have shady dealings.

Well, on the way to my "by the neighborhood standards" acceptable house, I found that the river was over flowing. I didn't know about it until I got there. Since the rest of the place was dry, I assume the river path must be clogged with rubbish. And who is going to clean it up? We the citizens who throw the rubbish there, are going to wait for our leaders and the Government to come clean up.

And so we have to wade throw contaminated water until the river water reduces. eeewwww. I thought this only happened in places that are far from the Capital and therefore the Government never looks there (I too blame the Government for this hahahaha).