Happy Valentine's day

I always have that doubt in my mind that I am not that romantic. Let me prove it less today by writing about Valentine’s day!

Valentine’s day is becoming more and more important to all. It impacts all.

It makes people excited: Oh yes, it is an important day for those youngsters who are in a relationship/engaged/married, it is the day to show their love and affection by exchanging gifts. Please do enjoy this day and strengthen further the bonding. 

It makes people curious and forward- looking: For those, still younger, singleton, there is enough hype and celebration around to remind them that their day is not far off. 

It makes people stretch their imagination to sell more : If you see the newspaper ads today, you have only one reason to buy something – Valentine. The jeweler has displayed his heart-shaped pendants telling you to open your heart to your loved one – is totally non-invasive to your body but might be fatal to your wallet. Real estate builder has blocked the whole week for valentines, he says home is where the heart is, by all means you can choose at what level you want to elevate your hearts to beat them more - either on 14^th or 28^th floor and remain there for ever! 

It makes people really busy : On my way to buy milk from the usual shop (by the way they are yet to introduce Valentine ’s Day special milk and hence they are not that busy yet!), I saw the florist up and running at 6 O clock in the morning itself! That too not alone, he has two assistants to help him to make the bouquets. Some time back it is the same fellow who told me at the end of his long yawn, that it would take another hour to make a bouquet for me to take to my office on occasion of one of my friends’ birthday, that too when I knocked at his door as late as 9 AM!

It makes people jealous: For old people, who think they are unfit for a celebration, it is the day to sit back and show their face written all over that they have seen enough of this. Some younger lot may even say this is not part of their culture, thinking rightly.

It makes people change: Those who are not that romantic it is a golden chance to show your true colours - if you run out of ideas just read the newspaper ads!

What happens to me:  My wife and I had never heard of Valentine’s day during our hey days. So even now after hearing so much, we don’t have the practice to block this day in our calendars to celebrate!  But that does not dampen our spirits, when that day arrives, we feel strong enough to celebrate. Both of us are all for it this year too, she is going to be out of town!!

Wish you all an impactful Valentine ’s Day.

Sympathy

We all normal humans tend to show sympathy towards others. We tend to help the needy. 

I got an opportunity today to demonstrate such behavior. I didn’t have any intention to let that chance go.

I was driving really fast and approaching a zebra crossing for pedestrians. I saw somebody waiting to cross the road. I suddenly applied the brakes. One good reason for such act of mine was to show off to other drivers that I had seen or at least heard about the fact that in advanced countries people stop their vehicle a few yards away if some pedestrian tries to cross the road.  The real reason was that the well-dressed, gentleman who was trying to cross the road was in crutches. Probably his left leg was temporarily out of order, he was holding single crutch on his left side. 

I was sympathetic to him and stopped my vehicle for him to cross. All non-sympathetic people started honking continuously from behind. Sympathetic drivers tried to overtake me, staring at me as if my vehicle had broken down. To my agony, neither my noble act nor the deafening honking sound from others did make any impact on the “physically differently-abled” man. He was happily talking over his mobile phone holding tightly to his right ear making good use of his only free hand! Standing stationary wherever he was with a gesture close to trying to cross the road.

Sadly some needy people don’t expect such sympathy from others, though they well deserve it.

It could also be possible, the circumstances might lead someone not to utilize or misuse the favor offered to him.  

I was in class 5. As usual I always used to get used-text-books of my elder sister, no new books for me! My parents used to constantly remind her to take good care of her text books so that they could be used by me later, which constantly encouraged her more not to open the books unnecessarily or otherwise! 

That year, probably mathematics was a bit tough for her. Parents’ intervention was required. End result, the maths text book was opened and closed more frequently, a few pages were torn or soiled. Though the book could have been used even in that condition, my parents decided to buy a new one for me. I had two copies of the same text book.

Since there were no statistical study reports then available which would have probably suggested that students holding two copies of text book of the same subject tend to score more in that subject, I was not all that keen to hold on to both the books. I decided to gift the older book to Anil, little, pale friend of mine. He was from a poor back ground and could not afford to buy even any thinner book than maths for that matter. I did see the book with him for a few days. And one fine day the book vanished. When I inquired about the book his answer was honest and simple “there was some money needed at home so I sold it!”

Our behavior of showing sympathy to others is natural, offering help is also natural, feeling happy that we could be of some use to others is also natural. Wise thing for us is not to worry too much on the outcome of our good deed, if we want to keep doing it. But knowing that our help was well utilized and it was impactful would double our satisfaction, and will urge us to do more, I guess.

Punished

All I can say is that I was not that clean in my school days. I had been punished quite a few times by my teachers. But in most of the occasions it was not a physical punishment. But one physical instance I vividly remember, since the pain was unbearable.

I was highly excited that day, I was picked up as class leader my headmaster. He had newly taken over after getting a transfer. I was not sure what made him think that I had enough leadership qualities then. I myself was not sure of that, I was so happy nevertheless. I could report all misconduct by my foes in the class and get them punished severely. 

The very next day all my dreams shattered. I forgot to bring the world map from the staff room and hang it in the class room, one of the important duties of the leader. 

Headmaster came in with all the enthusiasm to teach us geography, to show us the world around, to tell us where it would rain, where it would snow, where it would happen nothing. Not finding the world map in the normal place made him really angry. Unlucky for me – bringing that 1/2 inch thick cane stick was not part of my responsibility, I would have forgotten that one as well otherwise. He always used to carry it with himself, he could never knew when it would be put into use. He just lifted my half-trousers and beaten me twice. I lost my position of the leader, it pained more, I came to know at that tender age that a leader could also get punished!

But I had a bigger worry. How to hide those scars which would be so prominent?  That’s the day I tried to pull down my half-trousers as low as possible to conceal the dark marks on my thighs, not worrying  too much the actual purpose of the trousers to conceal something more important !. That’s the day I started hating the subject, geography! The fear was so much, I never got my maps right while drawing. For example whenever I drew map of India, it looked more like Africa, that included almost every inch of Pakistan in the west and major part of China in the north! That’s the day I wished full trousers were made mandatory to all school going students. That’s the day I wished canes be banned in schools. Unlike these days, I could not report that incident to my parents, chances were high I would be beaten up more on the same spot for getting punished in school!

Things have changed now. Teachers have to think twice before they punish a student. Students also are thinking more than twice before committing a mistake. And if punishment goes a bit harsh, parents revolt. Media reports. Student gets depressed, in a recent case a student took extreme step, took her life - unable to bare the humiliation of punishment.

Today’s story – 12 boy’s heads tonsured in a Bangalore based school, they are inmates of the school hostel. Students and their parents say it was done as punishment because these boys bunked classes and loitered in the playground. Schools authorities agree, it was a punishment, but it was a punishment to the lice on the boys’ heads. The barber doesn’t say much. Why should he? He is the happiest in the lot, he made his money in couple of hours for which otherwise he would have waited for couple of days eagerly looking for his customers while sharpening his scissors!

Today’s another tonsure story – a boy is punished and put into isolation until his hair grows! This happened miles away from Bangalore, in UK. The boy voluntarily decided to tonsure his head to raise money for cancer charity. Little did he know that school would not approve his noble act. According to school, he had violated the school hair-cut norms. He is unfit to sit in the class with others unless he has some hair on his head!

Whether hair or no hair - school management, teachers, students, parents, media all need to realise that committing mistake by students is common. Punishment by teachers is also common. But the wisdom by all to know where to draw the line - not to blow the mistake or the punishment out of proportion - doesn’t seem to be that common.