Age is just a number!

Relatively younger people, even in their late 30s and 40s speak about retirement and a life of doing nothing. But no sitting around and such dreams of retirement for almost 104 year doctor in Pune, Dr Balwant Ghatpande.

He says that till the day he dies, he wants to practice medicine and he seeks no retirement because he simply loves what he does and lives to work. He works 8-10 hours a day even today and his grandson, Chaitanya Ghatpande, who is also a doctor, calls his grandfather a workaholic.

His daily life entails a strict routine whereby after waking up in the morning, he exercises for an hour and then sits to read newspapers. Quoting it to be a secret of his unblemished health, he shares that for the last many years he has been taking a cold water bath only. Except a fracture that he recalls having in 1995, Dr Ghatpande claims to have never visited another doctor for any sort of illness. The secret is his healthy lifestyle with regular exercise and a moderate diet. This is the simplest way of living but the toughest.

And his charges? Rs.30 per patient, even in this day and age! Clearly, age is just a number and even at this age, he is such a source of inspiration.

As we move into a new year, maybe we make a new year resolution to be more like Dr Balwant Ghatpande …..