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Do I still have to give up my seat on trains?
A commuter’s kind offer was evidence the writer has entered a new life category.
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Commuters at Earls Court Tube station in London. When you are of a certain age, it is tricky to decide when to decline the offer of a seat on a train, says the writer.
PHOTO: AFP
Robert Shrimsley
The unthinkable happened recently. Someone offered me their seat on a train. It was very nice of them, of course, but rather distressing all the same. Being told you look of an age to be offered a seat is surely akin to a non-pregnant woman being asked when the baby is due.
I do not think I look in any way decrepit or unstable on my feet. I’m not entirely sure I even look my age. My hair remains dark and pretty thick, though the flecks of grey are making strategic incursions – apparently only in support of the local grey population, which was facing discrimination.
