My first day at school.
It was a rainy day and having put on my new school uniform, I sat on a chair in the vestibule. Usually, I prefer to sit on the concrete slab at the edge of the varanda, but it was raining heavily outside. I was , a bit disappointed on not being able to have the panoramic view of the landscape below, by sitting on the slab. This together with observing the flower plants at the edge of the forecourt was my first routine of the day. I missed the morning fragrance of the jasmine and gardenia. Later when I grew up and shifted residence to the city, this olfactory sensation chased me like a lost lover. The rain thickened and my attention turned into the torrential rain. The land was crisscrossed by the newly made rivulets. The trees swayed in the blowing wind and the gathered water on the leaves fell downwards. The pattering of the rain on the roof tiles made strange music. The monsoon in Kerala is a glorious affair, one of the greatest musical concerts of nature, and a rare visual treat also. The school opening here always goes in tandem with the arrival of monsoon. All the memories of the first days of school in any class are soaked in the rain.
Some mischievous winds sprayed water into the veranda and. I heard the call of my mother.
She was preparing breakfast and warned me of getting the flu if I sat there and got wet by the blowing rain wind. She also reminded me of the importance of the first day of joining the school. Being a teacher in a government school at Edathala she would always be very busy in the morning. For a while, I became conscious of my new school dress of cream color shirt and red trousers fastened with a multicolored belt. The fresh scent of the dress energized me. I ran my finger over the smooth surface of the belt and whistled imitating the garbling birds in the bushes.
My attention was diverted by an uproar and clatter of pots muffled by the drizzling of rain. Rajan chettan and his wife Lakshmi were coming with their children Usha and Sheeba wearing their school uniforms. Usha was four years senior to me and was studying in the fourth standard. Sheeba was of my age and she was also having her first school day. Soon two, three of their friends including sajeevan who was studying in the third standard, also joined. The uproar in the varanda made my father appear there from the inside of the house. Rajan chettan wished him and they both smiled in a teasing way and I soon realized that they were referring to the new school goers. This made me a little apprehensive and I looked at sheeba. Her countenance was more worried. This made me more perplexed.
I had only a vague idea of what the school was. I had seen my elder friends from the neighborhood talking enthusiastically about the incidents that occurred in the school, but the next morning itself, some of them had been unwilling to go to school and their parents had to force them to leave. It had been very interesting to watch them being dragged towards the school, on the failure of all the persuasions. But still some days they cheerfully go to school. So I was not overwhelmed by the prospect of going to school. For the last few days, I had been frequently reminded by my mother about the importance of going to school.
All through human history, the initiation into the world of letters is an important milestone in a person’s life. In ancient times before the formulation of the script, children were ceremoniously initiated into the world of phonetics. In ancient India during Vedic times in the absence of script, people used to memorize long hymns which was then passed over to the next generation. They wonderfully preserved this tradition for a long time and still, the same hymns are intoned daily by the Brahmins inside the temple. Panini, the Sanskrit grammarian of the 6th century, BCE was the first person to write a book on phonetics. Phonetics has strong relationships with the sounds of nature. The tweetings of birds, the mooing of cattle, and the many other sounds put forth by different creatures had influenced the history of phonetics. In the preschool days, I also had been fascinated and excited by different sounds from nature. While my father and mother were out for their employment I was alone in the varanda. My grandma would be busy with the caring of my younger brother. Even though usually I sit on the varanda frightened and excited by the numerous reptiles roaming around the yard, often I used to step into the greenish world beyond, to satisfy my curiosity. That colorful forbidden world was so mysterious with myriad sounds and bustle of activity by innumerable living beings including plants. The plant life also was given equal importance as the animal world. At that time the mind was not preoccupied with thoughts, it was clean like a slate and the impressions made on it were so strong that it lingers still.
Appachan(my Father) and Rajan chettan were having a chat about their school times. Usha and Sajeevan introduced us to the technical aspects of the slate and stone pencils which had been bought recently. They have a collection of shining bush plants which is used by children to erase what is written in the slate so that the slate can be used again. By the time we managed to master the technique, there was a depletion in the stock of the eraser. Sajeevan, to show off his mastery in the situation ran through the rain without taking an umbrella towards the grassland shaded by mango trees, saying he can easily collect it. Usha also followed him saying she also can do the same. We others encouraged them, clapping our hands and for a while, the conversation of the grown-ups disrupted. Rajan chettan became infuriated by seeing the children running about in the rain and scolded them back. We all laughed. Hearing the uproar my mother came from the kitchen and told my father that the time was running late and let the children be allowed to go to school. She used to have a prayer before all the important occasions. She called me towards the prayer room and we had a short prayer. She put a cross in my forehead with her finger. My brother got irritated on his sleep having been disrupted, but the commotion in the forecourt had enthused him and he stepped into the vestibule. The other children observed our prayer with curiosity as they were Hindus and we were Christians. Appachan and mummy kissed on my forehead and wished me good luck. My brother looked with annoyance on this treatment but he realized the gravity of the situation.
We all took our bag and opened the umbrella and started our journey towards the school, to the world of knowledge and experience. The blowing chilly wind caused beautiful music in the bamboo thicket, but the pattering of raindrops on the umbrella made a discordant note. The bushes on the roadside bathed in the rain and the blades of the grass bent on the weight of the raindrops. Occasionally raindrops from the big trees overhead thudded on the umbrella. The clean childish mind captured all impressions and during the passage of time, sifted out some discordant notes and stored it in some brain cells. Retrieving it makes me ecstatic and give some beautiful insights into the passing of time.
Rose, human experience is identical in spite of the difference in geography and race. Have you had your boat journey along the Danube as you mentioned in your last letter? You can watch the life flow in the shores as the flow of the water. It is interesting to notice the birds and animals educate their offsprings. Humans who stand at the end of the evolution chain are having modern methods for that according to the requirements of the time. Civilizational Change makes the thrust area vary. Do you know, your Hungary once had been the battleground of the barbaric nomads from the steppe. Their main thrust in education was to teach warfare and to maintain physical fitness so as to have a comfortable life on horseback. They spent most of their lifetime on horseback until their settlement in the planes. Good breeds of horses and better quality stirrup were available in Central Asia from where they came like waves after waves. Sarmatians, Gepids, Vandals, and Huns were some of the barbaric tribes had passed through this land until the settlement of Magyars who had fought and had interacted with Pechenegs, Cumans, and Bulgars. The list can still be sure stretched and all of these people mingled with the existing people there. So you being a brown Indian should never think that the European gene pool is homogenous. This is an unending story still continuing in a different way. The education system is also evolving according to the civilizational need and cultural mix. Europe passed through different cultural changes during the passage of time. The fall of Constantinople, renaissance, reformation, overseas expansions, Napoleonic wars, the industrial revolution, and world wars, etc influenced the cultural evolution of our modern times and the modern education system evolved.
The modern Indian education system depends heavily on this western system. A lot of our traditional learnings which had more rapport with the nature had been abandoned. This is painful. When I was a child even though the education system had been changed, there was still the bond with nature that would not have gone in a single sweep.
We reached the school by 9.30 A M. The schoolyard had been filled with spread out umbrellas and the commotion of the children. First-timers were few and so the sobs and sighs were submerged by the exuberance of the other students who had been upgraded to the higher standards. Rajan chettan did not enter the yard. He entrusted us to the seniors and went off wishing goodbye. My heart raced faster and I clutched the hands of Sheeba whose shoulder had been circled by her soothing sister Usha. It was still raining and we adjusted our umbrellas so that the stick would not jab others. I was overwhelmed with the intensity of mixed feelings, definitely, the tint of excitement was also there. Gradually the children were entered into the respective classes. I and Sheeba were admitted into different divisions. This pained me. Now in hindsight, I can imagine the reason. During admission time I had requested the principal to admit me into the division in which Sheeba would be allocated. My mother being shrewd and a little more farsighted, to avoid future complications, might have gesticulated that it should not be considered. I was entered into standard 1c. I sat alone on the side of a bunch observing silently and frightfully the tumultuous proceedings. Some parents whose children could not control their sorrow, and cried violently, were also allowed to enter the class. The room was in bedlam and I could not concentrate on a single incident due to this and also because of my mental state.
The sweets were distributed to children as a consolation and parents were requested to leave. Even though there was a heightening of the pitch of the crying, gradually that subsided.
But one child named Velayudhan who was our helper Kunjayyappan's son raised the pitch of his crying to the maximum attainable range and it was accompanied by the fluttering of his limbs, as he was in a catastrophe. The mother suddenly returned anxiously as the sound was audible even from a kilometer away. The headmistress entered the classroom and she lost all her composure and control. She did not allow his mother to enter the classroom and gave some severe beating with all the strength with her hard cane stick. This sudden attack petrified Velayudhan and he became numbed of the senses. His mother returned home as a shattered person.
Velayudhan was silent up to the end of the class. Later years he showed indifference to the studies and remained a dull student. Even the next year also his parents had to drag him to school and after four years they also resigned and allowed Velayudhsn to stop his studying.
The experience of the first day definitely destroyed him. The headmistress was also under tremendous pressure and in an unfortunate moment, she lost her control. Nowadays the proper psychological approach towards the students is taught to the teachers and any type of physical punishment to the children is discouraged.
However, on that day this incident put a shadow on my memories. I can not recollect anything further from that class. After two hours the class was disbursed and I found Rajan chettan was returned to fetch us.
We walked along the tar road edged by different kinds of trees and shrubs. Many of the trees were familiar to us. We renewed our acquaintance by pronouncing the names loudly and waving our hands. Unfamiliar ones attracted our special attention. The rain had been stopped and the sun rays turned the dark clouds silvery and the atmosphere attained a special gloss which enthralled us. The wet leaves of the plants were glossed in the dim sunlight and the beautiful flowers look softer. The rain had formed water puddles and we splashed it with a particular crackle. The sewage canal by the side of the road had been filled with flowing muddy water and it looked like a rivulet. The birds warbled and the frogs and many small creatures gave out different kinds of sounds so as they can no longer suppress their happiness. We forgot the incidents that occurred in the school and fused with the surroundings to celebrate the arrival of monsoon. We were in trance with nature. My memories also are filled with the fragrance of those times. We had a gifted childhood. Childhood in India is beautiful. Robust family bonds shower a child with love and affection. The material shortcomings are compensated by the abundance of nature. Nature is their vast playground. But, sadly the fast urbanization upset this equation. India being an orthodox society severely crippled by the financial difficulties, the reality check stares an individual from teen onwards. But the new generation is seemed to be different. In spite of their inclination to religious fundamentalism, the question many age-old orthodox practices. They are industrious and innovative, and a new confident India is emerging but painfully economical disparities are widening.
Rose, Europe had also undergone many social upheavals until it became an affluent modern society in which each individual has certain rights. But in these aspects, Northwestern Europe leads and as the Danube leaves German lands, gradually the banks
Precipitate the pockets of poverty. Eastern Europe is not as rich as other parts of Europe. A lot of historical factors contributed to this phenomenon. Industrialization and overseas expansion were pioneered by the west and the east was slow to turn into a capitalist economy. Fuedal relationship was different in the east. Lack of coastal area and the incessant fight with the Ottomans also contributed to this. In India also you can see that the southern and western states are more advanced than the rest of India and the presence of large coastal areas and the difference in the earlier feudal relationship are the two important reasons for this.
But rose, our state Kerala became the number one state in India due to many socioeconomic factors. You know the caste system is the basis of Indian social structure. It was so oppressive that historically lower castes were denied what is required for a dignified human existence. But in Kerala, where there was a sizeable Christian presence even before the coming of westerners, the missionary activities were actively pursued by the Europeans and then by the locals. Giving education to all is one of the positive aspects of missionary activity. A lot of other controversial issues also are there with respect to this. But irrespective of caste all got an education. That was great. The social reformers like Sree Narayana Guru transformed the thought process of the lower stratum. They started to gather confidence to stand in two legs. Later communist party of India continued the process and the lower stratum acquired enough self-esteem to stand shoulder to shoulder with upper caste. This was a revolution that did not happen in other parts of India. Those who want to transform India should have to look at this aspect first.
Europe hurdles these phases through a renaissance, reformation, and the Industrial Revolution and cemented social equality and underwent rapid economic progress. Even though the gulf boom gave Kerala better per capita, our economy has not undergone any radical shifts. We are not adequately industrialized. In the past decades, entrepreneurs were looked at as exploiters. This was a communist contribution.
Rose I know I am boring you. But we have to know the land well to have a better interaction with the people.
Very soon we reached near to my house. Rajan chettan put me at one of my neighbor’s hours which had been arranged by my mummy so that I would have some alphabet lessons from Mariymma chechi who was an unemployed degree holder of that family. Their family name was Kallan and the house was at the backside of our land beyond a bamboo thicket. Many bushes and brambles grew there along with the bamboos. The presence of different wildflowers attracted many bees and butterflies. The rich undergrowth was also thick with activity. We were never allowed to go that part of our land as many types of reptiles and insects ruled there. For me, it was a mysteries and captivating world. I will write about this in detail later. I went to Kallan's house along a narrow path through the bushes with trepid heart. Mariamma chechi received me heartily and this helped me to relax a little after an eventful forenoon. She sat me on a sofa and soon I fell into a doze.
