My theme for #MyFriendAlexa 2020 is School Days & Musings.    Hence, I will be penning down 8 stories that you can fall in love with and may revisit your beautiful innocent days that were never perfect but were filled with fun, laughter & pure joy.   The protagonists will vary every day to add a little more fun and I have used the most possible simple way of getting into these young minds. The Posts will be like diary entries made by these kids at the end of the day about how their day was (mostly about some very memorable encounters)! I have tried to visualize the world from the eyes of the unadulterated souls. I aspire to pass on a little smile that I can to each one of you reading my pieces so that I will feel that I was of some use.

Dear Diary,

  I have a lot to say today, please be patient, okay?

The clock ticks a little faster in the morning I guess. I saw my timetable today in the morning and packed my bag as per the routine.  One look at the clock & it gallops like that of a horse. Damn, only if I would have not played that video game yesterday night! I would have completed my homework on time, I think .  My Class-teacher being the most strict ones among all would never spare me today. I finished my breakfast as soon as possible just for the sake of eating. Mom looked at me with twisted eyebrows as always. All Moms do that. They are omnipresent and can understand your every activity. I pretend not to know what she expects of me and quickly finish off my plate.

 I almost run to get my Bicycle and get on it.  Just like the Rafale planes, I blaze off with sheer determination to reach school just in time. Yes, just in time!! Every second is crucial and I am no less than a soldier guarding the LOC on the Indo-Sino border. The unwavering faith to enter the school gate just before it closes is something that can only be felt and not told. And yes, I did that today as well. Just before the peon could closes the gate I and one of my classmates entered the gate. The jubilation is like winning an Olympic Gold. I had a smile without knowing what lied ahead.  

My Sports teacher, looked at me and my classmate with a smirk on his face.  His face resembles that of a fisherman who has just got hold of a fish in the net. He signaled me to stand in the late-comer’s line as soon as I keep my bicycle in the parking slot. I obliged and he nodded his head. I didn’t know what that nod signified. I shrugged myself because the stress was just too much to handle. My classmate looked at me with terrified eyes and signaled that we are going to be beheaded today. I could just pat my heart with one palm and exhale deeply. Nothing more scares me than the humiliation that is going to happen in front of the girls of my Class IX-A (9^th Standard). That too in front of Juhi! I kind of like her. She is beautiful and is very different from the rest of the chatterbox. She is the new girl who has just taken a transfer due to her dad’s job posting. I didn’t know how I will face her. That was my biggest concern as of today.

 I stood in the designated line with my head little tilted below and was looking at Juhi, who was standing on the stage with the Chorus group to sing the Daily Prayer Song. I could only see her face in the entire crowd. I just hopped that she does not see me. I sent out a little prayer.  The girls who are in the Morning Chorus group never get late, like ever!   I don’t understand how ?By the way, the late comer’s line is always looked down upon with disgust by the teachers as well as the students who manage to come on time.  Some of the girls even scan you from top to bottom as if by coming on time they manage to get some scholarship to some international university! This world is so unfair!! 

 While I was lost in my thoughts,   Ramesh Sir, yes the Sports teacher, came to check whether my shoes were polished properly or not, I rubbed my shoes very neatly at the back of each sock and voila, they just looked fine!  He looked at me with his frowned eyebrows as if I had stolen something from his house! By the time, he was about to call me out of the line,  I heard an announcement:

“Shekar  Das, Please come on stage to receive your prize for bagging the first prize in the inter-school Quiz Competition.’’

 What timing! It’s just like the ball hitting the outside of the boundary when you have anticipated a catch in the cricket match. I slightly looked up and gave a smile back to Ramesh Sir. He squeezed his eyes, clenched his fist and I smiled more brightly.

 I walked the corridor with pride after straightening my collar and took it a little up.  Just within seconds, my whole world had changed. I climbed the stairs to the stage and received the prize from  the Principal Sir. The whole assembly gave me an applause. While climbing down the stairs, I gave Juhi a side glance and she smiled back. I think I won my real trophy exactly then. What a day it was!  Absolutely, memorable & indelible…

Shekhar. ( Class-IX-A- )

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