The Best Years...

The class was in absolute chaos. The girls were chasing one another in circles while the ones who didn’t dare join in the moment, sat smiling at the reckless picture. There was no evident reason for such mad conduct except the thrill of enjoying that short switch over of lessons that came with the ringing of the bell. The screams echoed in the classroom and the athletic ones jumped over chairs and tables!

Our Math teacher was a handsome young man whose daughter happened to be our classmate. The presence of her father had never become a hurdle in her innocent plans to try out every possible crime! We understood each other very well on those grounds. My mother was a teacher as well and news travelled at lightning speed to her.

The chair was raised in the air and I was about to bang it onto the floor when the Math sir entered! “What in god’s name are you doing?” The class went silent. “Are you girls mad?” He looked at us in amazement. “Just what were you trying to do?” His voice was heavy and when it got really loud, it started to shake. The answer was quite simple, but no one dared open their mouths. “Just get out! I don’t want to see you girls in my class for a whole week! You will go to the Physics Lab and complete all the assignments that I will give you, but don’t dare enter this class before you have a reasonable answer for me!”

We left the class in shame but as soon as we entered the lab, we realized the incredibly generous deal that our silence had bought us! We couldn’t believe our good fortune! The window in the lab opened towards the school canteen and it had a small space that could squeeze in a few colas and some sandwiches! Each day, one of us would stand at the door guarding our cool plan, while the others whistled at the young girls sitting on the benches near the window. We shared the assignments and merrily ate our treats. 

In a matter of three days, our teacher realized his huge mistake, probably smelling the addictive food, and asked us to come back to class the next day! “But Sir, we still have three more days! This is not fair!” He looked at us with hopelessness! We left the room in memorable laughter.

The Biology Lab assistant was a bit of a sissy! We always instigated him to get him to exhibit his ‘Angry Profile!’ And while he would be scolding a few of us for our silly questions, the rest of the class would fall into a viral fit! For our class picnic, we had boarded the bus and were waiting for the driver to come on board. The teachers stood in the parking area enjoying a break from their mundane routines. The Lab assistant stood with them. As usual, we couldn’t sit still for too long! The bus had all its windows closed. We started to yell his name! As soon as he turned around to follow the sound, we became quiet. This confusion continued till our driver came and some teachers identified us and simply smiled away.

There are so many other incidents related to those few years we spent in school together as friends and companions. The smuggling of Biryani in the classroom on Valentine Day! A really bad idea with the instant aroma! Then smuggling it out again to the bushes in the school lawn to gulp the entire pot in Nano seconds! 

There was a girl who was our junior. She had offended one of our classmates using some really foul language! Of course we had to make her pay for it! So we gathered all the remaining bones from our biryani and wrapped them up in a beautiful red wrapping paper! A love note was attached on top and I was assigned with the X project to deliver the package in all secrecy to the victim.

The fun part was that my friends decorated me with a cap to help me get the feel of being a secret agent! I had to be careful! The corridor was long and exposed. The class was in progress and our own class teacher was busy delivering her lesson to them. The door was closed. I ducked down and crawled to the door. I placed the package on the floor and gave a loud knock! The sprint that followed has been the fastest ever to date in my life! 

We obviously could not witness those cherishing moments of receiving a Valentine gift. The pride that placed her above the rest of the crowd! At home time, we saw our teachers outside the Principal’s office with a whole lot of girls confused with the issue. Our Pakistan Studies teacher gave us a meaningful look knowing the Biryani we had enjoyed that day!

The home-economics lessons were just as memorable! We sat in a group enjoying the free time just before the class was to end. I was feeling really thirsty and needed 2 dirhams to buy a Dixi Cola! My friends were having a gala time refusing me the amount. Then one of them said, “Ok, I will give you the 2 dirhams, if you dare to drink these two raw eggs from this glass!” The teacher looked up as the whole group clapped at her genius idea! 

“So, if I do that, you will give me the money?” Some of them could not believe the seriousness in my tone. “Yuk! How could you even think that?” I took on the challenge. The Teacher kept her books down and watched from her table smiling at the desperate act. I closed my eyes and gulped the two raw eggs in a jiffy! They all screamed in disgust and awe! I got my 2 dirhams and that heroic win still amazes me!

I was a table-tennis player but had participated in badminton as well. It was important to try out everything. It was a preliminary match and the girl that I was playing against was a good one. It was a set of three games and I had lost the first one miserably. The spectators were just two teachers, our coach and some classmates. The second game was in progress and quite shamefully, it was game point 0. I being the 0! Just one more hit, and she would have won the game. 

The crowd was quite disinterested. I thought for a while, “Why am I giving up? If I am to lose, it should at least be a dignified one!” And it is one game, I can never forget. I started with my 0, to get the score to a tie and eventually I won the game! It was an unforgettable win! The coach shook my hand and even though, it was not a significant match in the entire competition, the game was one of the most thrilling ones.

For each scolding we got, we reacted with some prank. The evil walk to the teachers car park! The joy to discover an unlocked car! That was some thrill! Half of us would climb onto the car bonnet while one would sit inside and release the hand brake on the slope! The ride frightened the wits out of us, but it was still fun!

The School had special quarters built for the men who worked and lived in the school campus. Often we marched to the extreme end of the campus and sat in the open space to sing songs. One day, I and my friend decided to explore the quarters a little just out of foolish curiosity. We entered the enclosure with our hearts leaping out. The moment our eyes fell upon a pair of red polka dot socks, we fell to the floor in giggles. I ran to wear the huge slippers lying outside the rooms and my friend posed holding the socks in her hands! It was absolutely stupid, but gave us the thrill of having done something different through the day!

Today, when I look back at that time when we were young and filled with hope, I realize that we were complete rebels. The norms and laws bothered us. We did not want to meet any barriers that stopped us from exercising our likes and dislikes. We were confident about our goals and were ready to take on any dare to carve our own niche. We were not afraid to appear as fools to the world and enjoyed each other’s individuality.

Experimenting new ideas, fighting the odds in hopeless situations and living with a spirit like there is no tomorrow are the defining parameters of Our School Life! 

The laughter which needs no reason, support that comes without expectation and the passion that rules all emotions somehow gets lost in the journey through life!

(Dedicated to all my classmates through the Years 1989-94)