School Days Were The Best

You have nicely written the points highlighting Tomy Your classmate of her goodness and still keeping contact with her since 1957. It is awesome you could maintain friendship for six decades. Those born with silver spoon seldom care to maintain friendship with ordinary folks or and middle class.

2. Because of her you had learnt typing and that helped you land with plump job. There are school friends who help help us in unexpected ways.

3. The school of those days was simply, more on morals less on dress code. Now-a-days, teachers are scared of pupils. Teachers think twice before awarding punishment to erring students or admonish them in the class room.
4. In my school days, we had an hour in a week when story books would be distributed for reading and it will be taken back when the period is over.

• There was weekly once an hour for crafts in which we were taught spinning yarns out of cotton by thali and or charka.
• Without any additional coaching fees, coaching classes will be conducted after regular school hours for “weak” students in selected subjects. In the large sandy play ground many groups would engage themselves in playing hopping, sadugudu, hand cricket and so on during lunch hour break.

5. Vendors would be free to sell their products like ice cream sticks, masala peanuts, sugar candy, etc students with pocket money would buy from them and some used to be generous to offer to their poor class mates. I am able to recall names of many of my class names even today - a couple of them, I met after several years during the course of my career.

6. I remember the prayer time in a huge hall when entire students of school class by class in queue would arrive and participate in ten minutes prayer and then listen to few announcements by headmaster. Janaki raman - A classmate of mine was continuously dominated the prayer time by singing standing on a raised wooden platform. His forehead used to be decorated with three stripes of veebhudhi - the sacred ash, a huge dot with sandal paste, and a black dot with chandhu and vermillion dot all three in a vertical line . He would look very divine.

7. Rajamani would bring curd rice in stainless steel thooku and would always discard it. 8. 8. Students found stealthily chewing nuts or gum or peenuts during class would be awarded punishment - either they stand on the bench or stand outside the class room. They are called outstanding students.

9. Thirunarayanan - the tallest in the class - a voracious eater, whom I met after 17 years in Delhi in Connaught Place accidentally - was of great help in securing my driving license and later for transporting my vehicle to Bombay upon my transfer.

10. A friend of mine wrongly declared me failed in my SSLC CAUSING great distress but eventually it turned out that that I had passed and he failed.

11. We had no rigmorale of wearing uniforms or any dress code. I for many years went to school only in half pant called drawer and a slack shirt of different colours mostly unironed. There was no botheration to wear shoes or chappals. In fact books and notes I carried without any sling bag. Since my home was at Stone throw, school was my home. I think one spends at least fifteen years in school when they are pliable for discipline and docile and their character formation takes place.
Thanks for school nostalgia.
Regards.

 

Oh! those school days!Taking thookku was a common sight.The slim handle would come out or be broken and on many occasions replaced by a naada or thick thread to be mocked at by others.The child happily showing 0/10
to everybody in the street,
children unable to control excretions ,passing stools in their half pants or gowns,children taking out the fallen teeth and keeping it safe in a balapam box,
children having 3/4 of the slate hanging to the frame,children keeping peacock feather inside the notebook longing for its growth;
Many kids being tired to walk too long would lie down on the outside prakaram of temples;children playing with small stones on the pyol ( thinnai) of other houses
Extra ordinary sites which we can never imagine these days!
Jayasala 42

 

Madam sister’s this response had taken me to an Agraharam lass that I had seen long long ago exactly of the description here.

That oily head, stiff braided locks, thick சீட்டீ பாவாடை, broken slate in soiled wooden frame, playing hide & seek or aeroplane pandi & carrying some times home made snacks to ill-lit class with roof made of country tiles.

This description looks like a picture of poverty at current times but they then never knew they were ever poor! They were all a more happy with less.
Thanks and Regards.