Pallikoodam

Shakaran is again on the coconut tree…….yeah I am back in the deserted hostel as most of them have left for vacations ……..I remember my instructor at the firing range suggesting us to look at the green leaves having tried for long, aligning the two sights, before firing……. It helps to refresh the eyes…………………So after having starred into the laptop and study materials for quite a long time and listening to Yanni’s collection , which I love to hear to esp. when I am working on something very keenly, I thought of trying it out ………As I was peeping out of the window, I could see small kids with their parents approaching the school just opposite to our building ………………I think the admission for kindergarten is on……….. when one starts working , they think of the colorful college days and when in college , they think of the tensionless school days………the other side always looks greener………..Having parroted the alphabets and nursery rhymes to just speak out when they are asked to, I saw some of the kids coming happily while others had to be dragged by their parents …………I don’t exactly remember what happened during my admission process for kindergarten but my memories about school starts from the very first day being the most memorable day, which led me to have lost out all the enthusiasm to go to school……. Ha ha ha …………….


My brother being 4 years elder to me, I have been seeing him go to school and having friends to play with and of course the studies part was never been thought of. The whole idea of going to school was so wonderful that I kept waiting for the day I join school….. The first day of school, no one had to wake me up , or dress me up….. I did it all by myself…..was so thrilled……Parents were happy to have seen me so responsible as their pain to get me ready for school would be reduced……………My father dropped me to school……As usual ,the first day of LKG is like uncontrollable for both teachers as well as parents and not to forget the guard uncle……All children crying and running towards the school gate , children clinging on to their parents and not letting them go back to work or home……………..I was an exception…….I was rather wondering , why these kids were crying and behaving so ………….


I was on the first bench……..next to me was another boy, lets name him munna……..ha ha …………I asked him , why he had been weeping , and as an answer to it he just pushed me…………I thought to better keep quiet and not to talk to him……..he had been crying since the time he left home for school and had hardly any energy left to weep but was up to something , which I was clueless of, to get the attention of teacher who was drawing some pictures on the board to start with her job of teaching………………....I was enjoying every moment of school , when suddenly I realized that something bit me and yes true , something had really bit me…..it was not an insect but it was munna…….He had been getting frustrated sitting there and also tired of having cried all day long and so he thought may be biting me on my cheeks would make me cry ……he must have been jealous having seen me sit and enjoy the class…..but his idea was a big flop as I didn’t even make an ‘ouch’ or ‘ahh’ sound [was trying to be extra disciplined by not making any noise in class  ] but yes couldn’t stop the tears to roll down my eyes……….seeing me cry , the teacher came to my assistance and found one of my cheeks rosy red with designs of munna’s teeth, as if it had been poked up ready to be embedded with items ………My father came rushing to collect me from school……….


Next day morning , my character switched………………I didn’t even open my eyes, even though I was awake and to get my teeth brushed was a tough task…………….I didn’t want to go to school……..Mr Munna was the villain there……………As a kid when I used to waste food, my mother used to scare me saying , that the Satan would drag me holding my legs and I even used to dream of it, Satan being the one that appeared in the Onida TV advertisement………..Now I had one more Satan to be added on to the list , whom I was scared of…..Mr Munna….…. I don’t remember as of what happened exactly, we both were put into different classes and then I was kind of back to normal but still the enthusiasm that I had on the first day was never found again……….School days were fun because we hardly had any worries, and this realization does come when we grow up…….I just hope these children who are now going in for admissions have their best time here……….