Getting "Settled"

My friends are getting "settled" in life. There was a time, till just a couple of years back, when we all dreaded the 'M' word- M for marriage. We attributed life's all ills to it. Loss of freedom, commitments, end of happiness, throttling of our bank balances and what not. But today most of my friends are either hooked or about of get hooked in a few months time.

Just yesterday an old friend, Venki, called me and announced to me his wedding in Mysore this month end. Then another friend's wedding is fixed. It's strange to see people who until yesterday behaved idiots and jokers are suddenly acting serious. Strangely, family pressure and unrelenting girl friend seem to be top 2 reasons for my poor friends’ marriages. Going by Vinni's oft repeated- I think I am getting old- line, maybe we are indeed getting old. You see, today we may feel remaining unwedded is the best thing, but, who has predicted tomorrow. We may not find any takers when our opinion changes, at that age and conditions. So they have all agreed to take that selective risk. Then there are those, who argue why waste present for grim imagination of future.

I sometimes wonder how times have changed. Life has brought and placed us at such different conditions. I am not ruing, but, just wondering at the changed conditions. A few have big dreams about their married lives and others sans them. These dreams may or may not come true. But life moves on, making us more resilient and more accepting of reality. We gain a bit and lose a bit- that's what life is after all.