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" How old are you, professor?"* 

I turned around trying to locate the student who had
asked this unexpected question.

It was not hard to locate her. There she was smiling,
her hand up in the air.

" I am forty-two," I replied. " Why? "
 
" Would you like to be my age? '' She continued.

" How old are you, my dearest? " I inquired.

" Nineteen!" She answered. 

I looked at her straight in the eyes and emphatically declared:

"Of course not! "

" Why not, sir?" Shouted, almost all the students in the auditorium, as 
they were taken by surprise.

Since I had got their attention, I thought it a good opportunity
To talk to them about age, although I had nothing prepared.

I turned to the student who had asked me the question in
The first place, and asked her again:

" How old did you say you are? "
" Nineteen. " 
'' Would you like to die today? "
 She looked at me rather puzzled by my question but she firmly replied:
 " No!"
" What about tomorrow?"
" No!"
" In a week, perhaps? "
" No!"
" In a month, a year, in five years?"
" Certainly not! "
" What about ten or twenty years from now?"
" Absolutely, not! "
" You see, my dear student," I said: " You are dreaming of becoming
my age."
" It seems so!" She timidly replied.

" I wish you to reach my age and to live to be one hundred years old,
but are you sure you are going to live to be forty-two?"

" Honestly, I do not know." She whispered.

"Let us say that you will reach the age of forty-two.
Could you tell me if you would be: Healthy, have two legs, two arms, 
two eyes? Have a carrier, and a family of your own as I have? " I asked.

" No, sir, I cannot say that I would."  

I paused for a while, observed my students who had become
Very interested in the dialogue and added:
   
" You see, my dearest student, you are a potentiality but I am
a reality, why reality would ever wish to become potentiality again?"

Then, I went on to mention that in the Greek language the word "old" (Geros), means the "privileged one" because an old person is considered to be favored by fate. Therefore, getting older should be a reason to celebrate, to rejoice, to be grateful and happy, and not to be gloomy, miserable, and unhappy.
Remember, my dearest students, getting older is the only way for us to stay alive.   

Having said that, in a teasing mood, I asked:

" Would you like to be my age? "
 
" Yes, sir, we would. " Was their reply and they burst out into laughter!









© Demetrios Trifiatis
      21 June 2021 

* This is a true story. It took place in Montreal, Canada, where I was teaching
 Philosophy in a College, some thirty years ago.

** This is my 3000th poem. I would like to thank PoetrySoup and all the good friends and fellow poets who have supported me since 2012. God bless you!
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