Someone like me

There’s this one lady whom I admire a lot. She was a family friend, a well known state official and the Principal of my school when I was in Class XII. I dont know her very well but I do respect her because she just commands it from every person sitting across the room. She was one of the first few ladies I knew to wear her hair really short and look classy in it.

She’s extremely out spoken, calls a spade exactly one and doesnt care for anyone else’s opinions. Almost everyone was afraid of her, including me and we did not want to cross her path when she was in a bad mood, come what may. She used to make fun of her quiet, timid husband and crack jokes about how he once deserted her and the baby when there was an earthquake and ran out of the house, not caring for anyone else.

Her underlings were especially afraid of her sharp tongue and I suspect most people didnt like the way she spoke to them although none would have dared say a word against her. She was a stickler for discipline and could not bear to see one toe out of line where school matters were considered.

I once met her after I started working and we talked about her newborn grandchild, my career decisions and the memorable schooldays we spent together. The person I thought to be a real scary lady was now an indulgent granny, although still sharp witted and funny which I did not know before.

It seems once a particularly sycophant lady began praising her outfit nauseatingly during a party and said – My deay lady, you have the best taste in clothes. To which she clasped her hands and replied sweetly: Oh, you know I’ve been this way since I was a child.

The more I think of her, the more I think I’m like her in some ways. I’ve picked up a few pointers from her especially about the gender blender issue. Now what I need to do is get a short hair cut when I grow old and I’m all set.