Wednesday, April 02, 2008

The boy in home science

Ah! I guess I can take some time off to pen a few things down (actually punch em in). Its strange how much and how well I used to write when I was undergoing an emotional turmoil a year ago. The talent just seems to have disappeared now, now that I've been keeping extremely busy. Anyway it's been a long time that I haven't written anecdotes from the past on my blog.

I'll just tell you about the time when I was in 9th standard. I was one of the (may "the") quietest boy in the class (rather throughout the schooldays). When we were asked to choose between the subjects of Home-Science, Physical Education and Computers, I choose Home Science. This was due the fact that I found computers too boring and used to play basketball every evening for 4-5 hours at the Sec-46 Stadium so I didn't see the point in joining pys-ed at school. I was the only boy in HS, and since I was so introvert, had hardly ever talked to any of the class girls (even most boys for that matter). The girls found me extremely shy and quiet. Once I was standing and one of the girls (I remember her name "Deepali") threw a chalk at me. As my rotten luck would have it, it landed right above my crotch and left a clear white mark on my dark grey pants. Deepali burst out laughing which made the other girls look towards me...n down there...n they burst out laughing too. I got really embarassed and could feel the perspiration on my forehead and the feel the heat emanating from my ears.

That wasn't the only prob I faced in HS class. Once my teacher asked me to bake and bring an eggless cake. This was a major prob for me. You see I used to live alone with my dad and we could barely manage to make palatable food, let alone cakes...that too eggless ones which I had no clue about how they were made. "What the hell can replace an egg?" I thought to myself...I couldn't imagine as egg was my staple diet, the only things that dad and I knew how to prepare well. Anyway I finally baked a cake with eggs and didn't know that the cake was meant to be given to the principal who was a strict vegetarian. Of course they found out that the cake had eggs...and I went into a state of denial....and inside I was cursing myself for having enrolled in this stupid class.


Once our HS teacher was on leave so the HS girls decided they'd go to the football ground and play. I was happy, I thought they were gonna play football. I realized later that they had other plans. They started to play what the li'l children's game "A FARMER IN THE DEN, A FARMER IN THE DEN...HEY HO THE...BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH" I was utterly shocked..."how could 14 year old girls play the games of 8 year olds??" I sure was perplexed. From the corner of my eye, I watched the boys play basketball in the most horrible way possible. "I could teach those idiots" I thought to myself. None of them knew that I actually played pro because I never talked to anyone and never did tell anyone about it.
While I was lost in my thought, I saw the swarm of HS girls headed towards me!! "Run" I told myself out of instinct. But I was cornered. They started bullying me by ordering me to sing a song for them. I hadn't sung since 6th standard after a very bad performance left me completely embarrassed. "I'll die but I won't sing", I had vowed. So they gave me 2 options, "either sing for us or come and play with us"....boy the decision was simple, no matter how embarrassing. So they made me the farmer and made a circle around me and sang and danced around me. This was such a sight that the boys left their game and watched with their jaws drooping. Now that I think of it, my class girls were actually being nice to me. They wanted me to open up and live like a normal kid, but my family situation was such that I never could open up to anybody. I'm a completely different person now, I wish I could meet them and be friends with them again, but it's just a silly wish!

Anyway, after this episode I begged the principal to consider my case and shift me from HS to Physical Education; he conceded. Once in PhysEd, I showed them how to play basketball...and for the first time in my life, guys actually wanted to befriend me. I was so happy to be HOME! Finally I was accepted. But I always remained quite despite it all...well! At least they liked me! It was so important for me back then.
Surely I've changed now!
.
.

No comments: