I remember, last year this time I was one of those thousand other Indian students clueless n’ undergoing the agonies of an insecure future. This year, now, I’m off to my second year of graduation. Time passed and with every passing day you learn a new lesson. Some that others teach you, some that you teach yourself and yet there is this third category. A painful one where you are told about the truth you don’t want to accept. Even though one has the wish to change nothing is done since we are Indians n’ like every responsible Indian parent would teach us, we were also taught to adjust. I come from similar backgrounds and since I always filtered what was taught to me n’ learnt only what I thought was important, I skipped the “adjust lessons”. So for many I’m arrogant but for the rest who likes to believe me, it’s only my confidence.

Before I sway away from what I intended to say let me get back. There is this story which is much similar to our lives. Every morning in Africa a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning a lion wakes up. It knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death and this continues. It doesn't matter whether you are a lion or a gazelle. When sun comes up, you have to start running. But have we ever asked ourselves why? What is it that we get in the end? Is it to earn enough to rule out one meal’s hunger or to accumulate enough wealth to form pressure groups that overrule governments? Why do we run? Why have we become gazelles and lions? A 17 year old is sent away for a year so that she becomes intelligent enough to crack the competitive exams. She joins the best institutes, gets a degree, and marries a rich NRI, produce more doctor kids and a whole life goes on. What’s the point in such a life? What was the aim? A long evening walk, a positive deep talk with an old friend, to love selflessly, to smile from the heart- have we really forgotten them?

Being a doctor is being next to God. But today our “Gods” go on strike because they are not paid enough. 2010 and so forth has derived out of doctors their mercy and for that matter very medical ethics that they need to carry close to their hearts. What do our bureaucrats do? Sign on those policies which confirm them with better bribe amounts? Was that why they let down the most tempting years of their lives reading the thickest of books? If every citizen of India asked our politicians to perform first and then ask for vote most of our caste based dirty politics could have been wiped out.

We are a country of more than a billion with an enormous population of young blood and even if 20 youngsters from one state comes together, stay firm in their decisions, have a clear vision and a determined mind much of the coagulating corruption, bad policies and distorted planning can be made right. A movement is made then. The young generation possess a tremendous energy that only needs to be channelized in the right way. We can make wonders. All of us don’t need to be politicians and policy makers for that. Whatever you have chosen be sincere in it. If your father is corrupt pledge that you will not be one and if your father has been victim to corruption pledge that you’ll fight the evil. Our money should be just enough to let us live not take away one’s life.

When we see something wrong, how many of us gather guts to raise our voice against it? When X is publicly assaulted, nobody cares because X is nobody of ours. If Y is denied justice, nobody cares because we don’t know Y personally. We knew what happened to Z but we dint want to be a part of the dirty game so we kept quiet and finally when something happened to one of us nobody cared because we dint care for X,Y and Z.

In life remember one thing. Before you want to do something ask yourself one question, why? If the answer that your heart gives you makes you smile, then you are meant for it. Later if you are successful, you can be happy that you lived a life that you chose. If you not successful still you can be happy that you lived a life trying to prove a point.

And like I tell Meghna, for me, anything that makes me feel bad is my definition of ‘wrong’ and if we all have our definition set straight then many of our problems will find solutions.

INDIAN SCHOOL, SOHAR

Education is the basic right of every child. It is not just about by hearting facts printed in prescribed text books but is about the ideas behind those facts. But how much of today’s educational system helps the present age children? A very simple question: How much of what you learned the previous years do you remember now? Not many of us may be successful in answering that…

Ooppzz…I went away from what I really wanted to say!....sorry..(sho!...ente oru karyam!)

I’m presently in my 11^th grade…11 years of school life!!…ee stagil boothakaalethekku oru ethinotttam anivaryam alle?...aanenkilum allenkilum njan ethinokkan povukeya…kie...

………..Those were the days when the whole world pampered me….when I was the center of attraction wherever I went…the smallest n’ the youngest kid in ma family(thanks to my new born cousins…ettavum illayatha enna ahankaaram avaraittu theerthu thannu!!!) [:(]

***

Al Khabourah, Sultanate of Oman…that’s where I spent ma early childhood. My sister was in 7^th or 8^th and that was when ma dad n’ mom first spoke to me about school. LKG n’ UKG was at home itself. The fact that learning begins at home and that mother is a child’s first teacher is practically true in ma case!!...I was quiet excited about school mainly because I had seen ma sis doing various stuffs for reasons related to school.

I remember the day we went to get ma admission. I had to write some sort of a test. I don’t think that was much of a problem coz I don’t remember crying after that!!! You see, I was well versed in ABCD, 123, 2 n’ 3 LETTER WORDS!!! Thanks to Amma…!

Later that week ma parents told me that I had got admission. It did not really make much of a sense to me at that time though. I was happy coz Amma was happy!

Everything was ready n’ all was set. New books, uniform, lunch box, water bottle that had Pooh’s pic in the front, n’ I used to love the new red flat Mickey mouse bag n’ never let it go off ma shoulders!...OMG! so many new things. Aint these enough for a 6 year old girl to jump around with joy???

1998 mid- August…the day I made use of the basic right of every child. That morning Amma dressed me up in ma new grey pinafore n’ white shirt. My hair was neatly pushed back by a hair band leaving a few hair in the front. She pulled up the white socks n’ tightened my new black shoes. This whole process was of no new surprise to me because I had seen my sister do the same for 5 long years!!..hehe!

***

INDIAN SCHOOL, SOHAR

It was my first day in school n’ so my parents dropped us. Though I had visited ISS many times before, that day was different. That day I did not go as Aathira.K.R’s sister but as a fresh, young bud ready to explore the new world of education and schooling.

In the beginning I was made to sit in a classroom. I looked around to see so many kids of my same height!! I was so surprised and then the teacher called out “Chithra.K.R”…Eh! I stood up surprised as to how she knew my name? I’ve never met her before!!! She then called out a few others too we were moved to another class. As we moved out a voice called from behind, “In a straight line children”…

My parents were watching me. I smiled at them. Maybe they were happy or maybe proud or maybe both!!

Actually we all are very lucky right? We get all that which many children are being denied of….hmm…kie.. I agree…too sentimental…

And finally classes were decided. I was in 1-A…WoW!! A teacher walked in. She told us that we could call her Deepa teacher. Kie! Deepa teacher…my first teacher! We slowly began breaking the ice with one another I learned that the boy sitting right in front of me was Sameer…Sameer Khan!!(hey Sam…u r reading this right?) I had made friends with Kripa…my first eva friend!(hey where r u now?...I remember she left in std.3 n’ now it’s been 9 long years as I talked to my first friend…OMG!...But I’m sure I’ll meet u some day coz remember.. u never said goodbye the last time we met[:)]…right?)

There were so many people…Rohan, Shilpa Narayanan, Omar Maneesh, Raizwin, Griffath, Taraka, Shalu n’ so many.

It was lunch break and my sister had come to see me. I insisted on going with her to have my lunch but I couldn’t[:(].

And slowly my first day came to an end. After the last bell rang we all moved out. Chechi had told me to stand near the chairs in the front but…njan aara molu…I went n’ stood some where else!!hehe…She had to go searching for me everywhere!!(u know…I love making others go crazy!!) At last she found me n’ this was the first thing she told ma mom when she saw her[:(](chithu mindooooola).

By the way, guess what happened in the bus. My sister picked up my bag n’ found it too light. She opened it n’ with a shocking expression asked me, “Chithu...Where are all your books?” I peeped into ma bag n’ just looked around with a no-idea-expression. I had almost started crying n’ seeing this our driver uncle drove back to school. Chechi went to ma classroom n’ returned in a short while. She looked at me n’ in a very clam voice said, “Didn’t find your books in the class. All the teachers left. Chithu...try n’ remember...Did u give it to ny1?..” I slowly looked up n’ ‘twas just then that I remembered where my books were. In a tiny- winy squeaky voice I said, “Teacher collected all our books n’ kept it in the cupboard [:l]. The entire bus roared into laughter n’ I dint even dare to look at the driver’s face!

2^nd day onwards bus came n’ that is what u call bus!...It had red velvet curtains, A/C, nice cushioned seats where kid had to sit, music system n’ what not! WoW!

Luxurious life…from A/C homes to A/C buses n’ A/C classrooms!...A life which is a fantasy for many!

Days went by n’ many people came n’ went. Like they say…some people come to our lives n’ go quickly n’ some stay for a while n’ leave footprints in our hearts!

Life in ISS was super fun. There used to be something or the other everyday. Special programs on all special days from Janmashtami to Farewell n’ if it’s your b’day then the entire school sings for you. Aint that wonderful? There used to be separate activity periods n’ almost everything.

The teachers were the best part. They were not just the ones who tell you things that the text book said. They were friends, guides n’ everything. ISS was a family. There were no special kids. They were all equal. I don’t even remember a single day when I refused to go to school. Lunch breaks, P.T, music classes n’ everything used to be fun. I badly miss all the teachers there. John sir, Dalia teacher, Deepa teacher, Nancy teacher, Juliet teacher, Sanjana teacher, Geeta teacher, Samson sir, Jean teacher, Collin sir, Boss sir, Paramjeet teacher, Rajendran sir, Susan teacher, Anita teacher, Murukesh sir, Bobby teacher and so many…

Thank you teachers because if I’m anything at all today then it’s all because of you.

Friends are another driving force that pulls one to school n’ I’m very lucky that I got some of the really best friends in the world!

Rupali…she’s such an awesome girl…seriously…someone whom I just love being with. Jean teacher used to call us “cup n’ saucer”! coz you would never see one without the other. Now its 5 years as we are apart but still we have contacts through letters n’ phone calls. I feel so damn happy when I get her letter…yaar seriously miss u!

Rupali, Sanam, Rachna n’ I used to be a gang. We all used to have so much fun together. All the pranks we played, the cards we made together, the over-night stays n’ the fun times we had…god………hey guys…remember the last party we had…that was super fun n’ the pav bhaji Rachu’s mom made! WoW!!!!

Not just them 3 but there are so many others too…Sameer, Preethish, Raizwin, Brinsely, Vasudev, Shreyas, Surabhi, Krittikka, Ardra, Rucha, Marushka, Misha, Reshma, Sunaina, Soumya, Tahar, Radha, Khadeeja, Saranya n’ so many others…God…we had one hec of a time together. The morning n’ evening trips in the bus with Shajna, Shameema, Afrah, Ameena, Jerry, Anoop n’ a few Pakistanis who studied in Pakistan school. Everything seems to be like ‘twas over yesterday.

The annual days, the oath taking ceremonies, classroom hours, last day class parties, all the dances n’ dramas we performed, all those encouraging words from the teachers n’ buddies n’ everything is still there within me.

STD 5, YEAR 2003…That year my sis was in 12^th and we had clear plans of shifting to India for her higher studies. That meant it was my last year in ISS. Noooooooo! Anything but not this. Why was it that good times never lasted long?

31^st MARCH, 2003…that was my last day in ISS. The fact that I was leaving was a shock to may. There was just one question, : “why are you leaving?”…the answer to which even I did not know clearly. Was it really important for me to leave? There definitely can’t be anything better waiting for me coz nothing in the world can replace ISS. That day I distributed sweets to my classmates (I don’t know why I did that coz ‘twas not supposed to be a happy moment!) It was a mixture of emotions that filled the mind n’ heart of a 10 yr old girl. Happy? Sad? Angry? Or what was it? Or was it just consoling my friends that I would return some day? (which never did happen) I don’t know.

At about 12:30 or 1:00 my parents came to call me telling that my TC was taken. I couldn’t even complete my last day…I took my bag n’ for the last time turned back to those faces that brightened my world. Will I ever meet them again? I did not know anything. I slowly walked towards the gate. Each step ahead meant leaving a breathe of mine behind. The building and corridors that I was used to…the playground which taught me to play…that taught me to win every battle in life…my friends who made me feel that I was never alone…my teachers who taught me to believe in the best…my school that taught me to dream, to chase my dreams and stand for what is right n’ rebel against what was wrong…

An institution that shaped my childhood…in whose security I spent 5 years of my life.

As I thought all this the huge gate closed behind me.

***

And today its been 6 years n’ many of them left n’ some are still there…yet we all remember one another and stay in touch too...thanks to ORKUT! I’m sure that we are all missing all those good old days and definitely wanna go back.

So at this point… a reunion wouldn’t be a bad idea right???[;)]

(24^th January 2009.)

31st October, 2008

This is not the philosophy of a transforming adolescent or the usual lines of a blog writer... but the true feelings of an unruly teenager!!...

My day does not begin like the other kids of ma age…No waking up at 4:00…any tuts n’ other stuffs for which ma fellow mates waste their time!! I don’t have principles or ideals but yeah I solely believe in what ma heart says n’ just does what I feel is rite…

Life was a celebration until 15 or something but like our princi says this transforming period just gets on ma nerves...

Okie…now I don’t wanna list out ma boring story n’ waste all the tym…so let’s get on to something betta…!!!

STD 11

April- June was the most exciting period of the year. One reason being the upcoming results of STD 10 boards(also coz dat marked the end of an hectic year…long lectures on systematic studies…advises on how to take along the crucial yr of one’s life etc…etc…etc…)

2^nd reason was coz we wer going to our 11^th grade. We wer told (by our seniors) dat 11^th wud be the best times of ur life n’ angane ethre ethre mohana vaagdanangal!!

But trust me 11^th is not a bed of roses…at least not for our batch. So many rules, regulations bla…bla…blaa…From 10^th to 11 was a huge jump.

They have injected out all our energy enzymes n’ presently we are in a deactivated state.

BUT THERE WAS 1 DAY IN THIS YEAR THAT NONE OF US WUD FORGET…

………………….EXCURTION……………….

By the end of September discussions about excursion had begun. N’ wat we heard was least expected… “EXCURTION FOR STD.11 CUT SHORT TO ONE DAY”. Well all I cud say was, “WTF”...Long protests, revolts or even pleadings wouldn’t help. Something decided once was decided for ever…

In the beginning all of us wer like, “Veegaland…no way…gone der tons o’ times”.

And then slowly the above said changed to “…hmmm…nokette…varano?”

N’ 2 weeks before the trip was to be most of us were like… “Of course da...last excursion…I’m definitely coming…one day enkil one day”…but yet der wer a few who weren’t still willing n’ they wer actually the ones who were most needed for a so called “jolly trip”.

We tried everything n’ finally convinced them (nangalu aara makkalu?).

By the end of Oct, they had a good news n’ a bad news for us. Good news like I said was the most awaited event of the year…

“EXCURTION FOR STD 11 ON 31^ST OCT.”

HURRAH…CHEERS!!

Err…n’ wazz the bad news???

“Exam on 28^th, 29th n’ 30^th Oct.”

Owwwwwwwww….!

2 Fridays before 31^st, this was how it went…, “hey Pooja wazzup?...hey u know what...2 weeks later this time we’ll be enjoying”

Pooja, “yeah ...I know...n’ these 2 weeks we’ll be studying!!!”

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr…..

Talks about the tour slowly resided n’ instead in our heads there were things like the equation of rotational motion n’ what the Chinese painter expected from his viewers etc…etc…etc…

English was our last exam. Least were we bothered about the rain being the poem of the Earth or why Ranga’s face turned into a roasted bringal. Instead our fields of interest were on what should be worn the next day, which all songs must be copied, which horror movie we preferred for the return trip n’ so many other things dat were yet to be decided.

N’ finally the day arrived…31^st Oct, 2008 was the only day of the year dat I did not make any fuss about getting up at 3:30 in the morning n’ was the only time when I was excited about going to school!!!

By 5:00 am all of us were there… (hmm...Athira n’ I were the last ones to arrive…Neere poi Bindu missinte (Chemistry n’ class teacher) munpil chadi…pinnathe karyam parayendallo!!!)

All of us were inside the huge air bus. After the prayer the bus took off n’ as we crossed the St.Thomas gate we cheered, clapped n’ what not!

Few of them wer busy with the camera n’ the rest of us were tapping our feet to the rhythms of ‘pappu can’t dance’ n’ the latest hits of the year.

At about 9:00 we got down at Hotel Prince at Alapuzha for breakfast. We met the rest of our buddies (who wer in different buses) n’ every thing went like we thought it would be.

…Photo sessions...posing (oof...Reshma Jeladharane kondu onnu smile cheyipikkan petta paadu!) hi, bye...OMG! Dat morning was the most beautiful dream! (COPYRIGHTS FROM Reshma Jeladharan!)

On the way to Veegaland…

Many others from different buses had joined us by now n’ after a few talks we decided to play Anthakshri…Rosemol ma’am was in our team n’ guess what?..Rosemol ma’am n’ Bindu ma’am were actually singing n’ dancing along with us…Can u believe that?? Rosemol teacher’s name is the one that entire STCS shivers on hearing!!! But that day we understood that they wer actually real sports n’ that they scream n’ scold us just coz they want us to be the best!

We reached Veegaland at about 11:00 n’ changed n’ ran off in 4 different directions.

We 1^st got into the monster ride…Ahh! Sheesh!...That was a horrible start...Athira who was beside me was screaming out ma name n’ I…oof…what do I say?? They went at such a speed here n’ there n’ err….n’ finally they stopped! Thank God! There was a totally expression- less Toby opposite to me n’ u noe wat he asked me?... “Ninakku pedi aayo?...I dint get scared at all!!!”…errrrr….

It was not until we got into the space gun did we realize that the monster ride was actually nothing! Govind n’ John was almost in tears when they got down…Pavam! God! They held us upside down in the air for about 3 minutes n’ this happened 4 times! N’ the speed with which they did this gave a jerk to the belt that held us! For that minute I thought I fell down...I was dead!!! All of us were screaming our lungs out, “STOP THIS PLZZZZZZZ…STOP IT…TAKE ME DOWN!!...AMMAAAAAAA”!

After the ride all of us were shivering. That was an experience!! Seriously!

It was only after we got under the sprinkling shower that we regained ourselves back!

At 1:00 we went for lunch( u had to see how our hands wer shivering) n’ after the vintage tornado we went for the water rides. Started off with the water splash...That was awesome …just loved it…Then the family pool (Guess what...All the teachers were enjoying in the water n’ tubes there!...n’ Veena actually made them stand under the bucket n’ SPLASH!...Hahaha…Bindu ma’am was looking around n’ her expression said “what actually happened now???” hehehe…That was a sight to see!

At 4:20 we got into the wave pool…It was real fun…superb!

N’ yeah there was this mat ride….grrrrr….I’ve have never been so embarrassed before! Eh!

I was lying down on the mat n’ the man there told to go. I pushed n’ sheesh…dat mat did not move!!...err…Appozhekum avide whistle adi okke thodangi…Idiots! I was like “jammed” over there. Randum kalpichu I kicked off n’ u noe what happened??...I WENT SLIDING DOWN N’ THE MAT WAS STILL THERE…WHERE ‘TWAS BEFORE!

Have you ever experienced something like this before? No right! What could I do?...Aake chammi…avide chennu irikugeyum cheythu, aa mat aanenkil pokunathum illa n’ ottum sahikan pattanathu aa localzinte koovalum….sho!...chathu! I got up n’ walked the whole slide down L…Appol dha avide John… “eda...ninte mat koodi eduthondu po”….errrrrrr…(engane chorinnu vannanu ariyuvo?)

Funny part was that the same thing happened to Athira after that!...BSASAASSAAA…

Worst part was the “vayinokkis” over there…LOOSERS!...Nangalude boys wave poolil vechu avanmaarku sherikum koduthu…they deserve it. .JOBLESS PPL!

Wave pool was the last ride we could get in. Time was up n’ we had to leave. All of us changed n’ then it was time to capture the best moments in the film!

PHOTOGRAPHS!!

N’ between this Manu n’ Reshma fought!...(Alla eppozhum ollatha…but u noe! …[;-)]

There was a pic taken during this time…both of them wer looking in 2 different directions!...hehehehe…kie…they patched up again n’ then we headed for the bus.

Teachers had a very tough time tallying the kids in all the buses n’ by now Bindu ma’am had lost it… “Eh!...no ma’am… not today…plzzzzzzzzz!”...kie…ellam sheri aayi n’ she got her mood back (thank god!) n’ the bus took off n’ we crossed the gates of the largest water theme park of Kerala.

GOODBYE VEEGALAND!

The return trip was awesome. In the beginning most of us were tired n’ charged up a little bit when we saw the rest of Happy Days…yeah…’twas a good movie…actually perfect timing I’d say. U noe watching a friendship based movie with friends always makes one feel nice. The best scene was when that guy was running away from his seniors n’ just then his entire batch mates came around to fight them back…J

FRIENDS ARE MA LIFE….YAAR...LUV YOU ALL!

N’ then we put a horror thriller, “the Exorcist”…But no…We weren’t allowed to watch it…L…kie saramilla…chuk it.. Later they put such a dump movie, Happy…Gosh what was that stupid guy doing all the time? Most of them slept off seeing his totally crazy actions! Hmmm…I dint feel sleepy [;-)]…Ramya was fast asleeeeeeep n’ Reshma Jeladharan, beside me was just too busy with something else!!! (heheheheh…sorry Resh).

Then Ramya n’ I spoke to Gayathri…missed her a lot the whole time… “why did u have to change ur school?” L

We got down for dinner at Alapuzha n’ by then all of us were tired. After getting back into the bus, Rosemol ma’am was like, “Kie, now the next stop is our school”…Though no one dared to tell it aloud, this was what everyone thought…, “Venda teacher….no need of going back”.

Coming back each one was doing different things. Lights went off n’ ‘twas totally dark. Traveling late night at 1:30 with friends is definitely fun n’ if you have confirmed that the teachers around u have slept…(heheheheh…)…pinne parayendallo!

I was busy sending sms like many others…not to anybody far off but to ma friend who was rite behind ma seat!...Ahankaaram….allathe entha? If you have a mobile that has a free sms scheme then that definitely makes life easy!!!

Kie… time was up…Teachers got up. Bindu ma’am regained all her lost mood back n’ told to wake up everyone... “LAST ONE HOUR”. Lights came on, everybody got up.

MUZIQ!!

All of us were enjoying that last hour…We made the teachers dance…teased one another…told out many things which were secrets till then n’ enjoyed every second from then.

We reached TVM n’ slowly a few got down…. “bye…tata…birla…tc…”

At 2:00 we reached school. Hmmm…end of our trip...saw all the people we had enjoyed the day with…Athira, Ramya, Vinila, Athira Ram., Reshma Jela, Reshma, Janis, Melissa, Pooja, Anjana, Misha, Sachu, Manu, Bharat, Govind, John, Toby, Ankith, Sanker, Sachin, Mathai n’ so many others..

Goodbyes, hugs…hmmm….wished that night’s travel never ended.

Mamma came…n’ I was here…back home…

The most beautiful dream had come to an end.

STD 11 excursion was over.

For another 1 week we were still in the space gun… the wave pool n’ came back to our real senses only when our physics n’ Math papers were handed over to us!!!

At the end of the day, ma buddies n’ I just said, “WE WANNA GO BACK”

(Who wouldn’t when u have such thick friends around u???)