Glossing Over Subject Line

GLOSSING OVER SUBJECT LINE

I began studying for final degree exam at one yes one A.M. It was according to numerology, my lucky time you can say. It was radioactivity in physics. It was around 4 o’clock when I finished by-hearting the definition of radioactivity; and practiced writing three-four times and finally when I was confident that I “Knew” by rote, I closed the book and went to bed. As I had missed previous lectures of modern physics by newly appointed Professor, I had decided to attend the class on that day afternoon.

I stood at entrance of the class room in the first floor where the new Professor had already commenced lecture. As I could see only broad back of him in immaculate white suit busy writing on the black board, I gently knocked at the glass door. Seeing me for the first time, clad in a new handloom shirt in flashy color with zigzag stitches, contrasting coloured threads, large buttoned oversized flap pockets and a skull cap on my head, entire class burst into laughter. Coinciding with this, Professor slowly turned his head over 180° and looked askance; and with a wry face gestured me to get in.

I climbed up, pounding the wooden steps of the gallery in big leaps and reached the top row, sat ensconced between Ballu and Bhaddu. I opened my book and held it vertically up on the desk. Ballu was asking whether I had sprayed any perfume over myself. I said no.

Professor finished writing on the black board “Radioactivity” and continued with his lecture. While lecturing, his gaze was alternating between blackboard and hardly-awake-classmates thanks to the gentle sea breeze that was blowing from Bay of Bengal.

Professor was tall, stocky, his crown centrally bald annular gray hair and with a prominent tummy. A piece of chalk held between his fingers slipped to the floor and broke. He did not bother to pick it up. Ananth and Revathi of front row, simultaneously up from their seat to pick up the broken piece from the wooden floor and collided with each other. Revathi won the moment and handed the chalk to the professor. On seeing this, Ballu giggled, attracting the attention of already irked professor to over top row of the gallery.

That was the moment he saw me holding a book, sporting the wrapper of - KUMUDAM - a popular Tamil weekly magazine. Ballu and Bhaddu also thought that I was reading Magazine! As I lifted my head from the book, I saw Professor was approaching and so I closed the book and tried to keep it out of sight.

Professor demanded to know what I was reading and to show the book. I handed over the book to him. Without opening the book, he said, “you are inattentive and reading smelly story books. Do you have any plans to write final exam and come up in life?”

I replied that I was reading only what was being taught. He got annoyed and wanted to corner me by asking the definition of radioactivity. I was startled. With a long stare, Professor in a curt tone asked whether I knew it or not. I remembered the wee hours. In a jiffy, I could recall and confidently reproduce verbatim without understanding. I told in one breath in great hurry lest I would forget–Radioactivity is a self-disruptive activity exhibited by several of the heavy elements of atomic weight greater than 206 occurring in nature…..the unit of radioactivity is Curie.”

A thunderous applause followed from class mates. Professor patting on my shoulder exclaimed a tad sarcastically “What a genius you are! But don’t read story books in the class room. Politely, in a tapering humble tone I said, “But, Sir…. It is not story book. It is the prescribed book.”

A tad annoyed professor browsed through the book, surprised only to find it contained part of the lessons of Modern Physics from the prescribed text book and its wrapper was of a popular Tamil weekly magazine sprayed with perfume. He seemed to have enjoyed as to how it had tricked/irked him. He smelled rather inhaled the book and returning it to me, with a reluctant smile said, “Good show. Keep it up”.
Then I faintly asked him - “Sir, am I in for final degree exam?”

 

@Sunburst Thanks. it was a kind of relief to see one "like" for this snippet which was like spotting an oasis in a vast desert. Regards. God Bless Us All.

 

Thank You. Numerology was just an obsession and with so much of negative motivation, I was desperate to pass and become graduate. But to every one surprise including my close pals and Head of Physics Department, it turned out that I was one among the four to get Degree with first class. The regret was Lab Partner Revathi missed her First Class by a whisker. Regards. God Bless Us All.

 

Thank You for the beer toast emoji. Mention of R missing I Class -That was because, all through the three years she scored highest marks almost in all subjects and it was shock to all her class mates including me. but later, she made it in Masters and heard retired as head of department of physics from a college in Coimbatore. That was relief!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks and regards. God Bless Us All.

 

You have put me in absolute delight with paraphrasing and you gripped and grasped the nuances for review par excellence. Revathi was told about numerology but she dismissed it as hocus-pocus. But she made good amends in her master's and heard superannuated as head of department of physics!
Sir, I do marvel at your eagerness to study everything profoundly that comes probably naturally to your desk at all times.
You might have guessed it. The wrapper of Kumudam contained of course a blow-up of celebrity cine heroine.
Kudos to your promptness in plunging instantly to give effective reply/response and in serious matters after a bit of cogitation.
Thank you from bottom of my ❤️. Regards. God Bless Us All.

 

Thanks and happy that am being envied.
2.While many for exam prepare also in late night stretching upto small hours, but they began the studies perhaps before 10 or 11. The Numerology guru from whom I HEARD for me the good hour begins at One AM every Sunday Monday combined night, I began with all earnest my preparation at that un/Godly hour. I researched Cheiro's Numerology and told my dad about it and he too followed as a sequel got good connection and association with the Ex Chief Minister Mr Kamaraj and got berth closer home in then Popular News paper office at a senior level. He could not believe himself the luck; and got me in few days the topaz ring that I longed for. Some how when the right moment, right colour balance in attire and the right day strikes together, it is winning moment for many.
I realised in those days, Repeated reading though helps especially definitions - but writing few times -too good to remember and retrieve.
Sitting in first row, at my school level, I found some of my class teachers' saliva sprayed on to students head and whatever s/he teaches goes invariably over our head. One student sitting with me in front row complained to the teacher about it and he said it was as good as Ganga Jal and next minute he quipped to wash of sins -whether his grand father's asthi can be put into his mouth (supposed to be filled of Ganga)!
I used to collect broken chalk pieces in class room and use that to practise writing and deriving definitions etc. on the cement floor at home. fountain pen ink and writing paper were costly!!!
I could not get admission in supposed to be best colleges and as a last resort, I landed in co-ed college. of course I enjoyed my college days too with a large dude circle.
Regards. God Bless Us All.