I celebrated my 43rd birthday a few days ago. Having gone through the psychological '40' barrier a few years ago the day itself was a non-event.
There were the congratulatory phone and email wishes from friends and family, even a few birthday cards I received via snail mail.
Death can strike humans at any time and far be it for me to question my departure time. Still, stay with me as I speculate based on probabilities and statistics.
A Singaporean male's life expectancy is 75 years while a Pakistani male is expected to live a decade less (65). Average the two and I have another 27 years to go – until I hit the ripe old age of 70.
It's a sobering thought to know that more than half my life is now behind me.
Elvis had been accused of satanic behaviour and helped change pop culture before he hit twenty. Napoleon's first attempt to take over France occurred before his 30th birthday.
Yes, I can talk about some serious professional achievements during my twenty plus years of toiling and grovelling for the Gods of the corporate world. But do I want to be remembered for having led a team which launched the first Shariah compliant local currency bond or a Middle Eastern asset management business?
I really don't think so. But I can't claim to have changed pop culture or attempted to overthrow a government, at least not yet.
My aims are far more modest - being remembered as the 'Grand Moofti' will be rewarding enough for me!
PS - For those still look for an answer on how to outlive Elvis (who died at age 42) in 1977: don't overdose on prescription drugs while going to the toilet!
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