Joyce Stirling’s column continued: Some Advice to those “Getting On” in Life.

If you are ‘getting on’ and people mention Lord Kitchener or the Battle of the Somme, it is well to remember to look vague. This commits you to nothing. It might even be mistaken for your normal expression. Be careful, too, of song titles of the Twenties, or any reference to silent movies. Of course, I know there were such things as silent movies. My mother told me.

Not long ago an old man I interviewed asked me if I remembered the ’93 flood. [Flooding of the Brisbane River in 1893]. This gave me a nasty jolt. The old man in question reached the stage when instead of wanting to conceal his age he was anxious to skite [brag] about it.

This usually happens to people around the ‘70’s’ or ‘80’s’. Instead of forgetting things, people start remembering them. Not only do they remember Lord Kitchener and World War I, but they also start mucking about with Mr. Gladstone and the Crimea.

Human nature’s very peculiar. Once we’ve passed the point of no return we stop lying about how young we are and start lying about how old we are.

Well, no one can say the old gentleman of 189 in Persia isn’t ‘getting on’. And heaven knows what he remembers. But I do hope he didn’t ask the reporter who interviewed him if he remembered the French Revolution.

-See The Best of Joyce Stirling, Jacaranda Press, 1963 for more of Ms Stirling’s newspaper columns