Being ‘Uncled’…

Uncle.. How those words rankle in you mind when you are called exactly that.. I did that through out my life to anyone who looked 5 years older than me without discretion.. I thought it was the easiest thing to call someone without being rude and without having to go through the trouble of asking for names. I was mighty pleased with this arrangement until total I was at the receiving end.. Playing cricket with some guys 10 years younger than me,  thought I was just being my young self.. Until the batsman got out and looked back at me and single handedly made me feel 20 years older by saying; ‘Uncle you can bat now’. He said this without hesitation, without batting an eyelid.. My temporary limp and my 4 day old stubble did not help me either..Being just over 25 I thought I wouldn’t hear the word for at least 10 years.. And now it hit me.. Now I understand the relevance of the old Hair Dye AD wherein a middle aged man is agonizing over being called an Uncle (Uncle.. Uncle..  the echo went in the AD) because of a little grey hair.. The target segment must have connected with the AD and sent sales shooting.. Coz its difficult to handle being called Uncle by the PYT next door..

 

How am I gonna get out of this situation now? Cant look younger, cant turn back time, cant make the kids grow faster.. Hell, I was the youngest guy amongst my roomies and never felt old. I made them feel ancient even! I’ve nearly run out of options and resigned to the fact of being ‘Uncled’.. And then it struck me. Maybe there is a Win-win situation after all. I could hang out with people older than me and “Uncle” them every chance I get! But that would lead to another problem, as embarrassing as the previous one, that of being labeled the ‘kid’ (Bachhu) and resigning to a life of not being taken seriously ever L

~ by ashish on June 15, 2008.