To New Beginnings

As the day broke, for a change, without any alarm or anyone beating/shouting, I woke up on my own!!! Yes. It was nothing short of a medical miracle that me getting up on my own, even after so many years of having gone through the. When your nervousness crosses an invisible threshold, body clock starts ticking in explosive sound that, you can’t keep your eyes close, even if try to shut them tight. I was fidgety to say the least and went on autopilot mode to get the morning chores completed.
It was Junior’s first day of school re-opening.
I was getting tensed as if I myself was the one, who was starting his school life, again!! Junior, though, was at his sprightly best and was all laughing and playing. He was extra chirpy and got ready in no time. All the way from home, I was holding tight on to the auto, with my wife mentioning something to junior, repeatedly, about which I couldn’t quite figure, for I was mentally elsewhere. We both took him inside, to his class room and he waved us off. She was so happy that he didn’t create any fuss and wasn’t crying. We decided to hang back late to watch the proceedings as we had reached the class early. The prayer was about to begin and off marched the kids, with their arms folded back, walking on a stringy straight line. Some of them where crying, not just the kids(!!), some rushing, some came casually strolling, while some were wondering in amazement at the huge playground full of people of all shapes and sizes. Junior was observing everything with his usual curiosity and was noting a huge Ganesha mural on the building. I was pretty sure what would be next on the shopping list, when he came out. Having already screwed up his dance performance, by making myself visible to him, I had been strictly warned, never to show my head, till the time he went back to class. We both were literally hiding behind a wall, watching his every step with a sense of eagerness and dare. After the prayer got over, he was looking around and slowly walked back to his class. Didn’t even realize I was holding back my breath all the while. I slowly started noticing other kids. They were all looking alike, just like my junior and not just because of their uniforms. It felt as if I was standing on a garden, full of beautiful flowers of all possible colors, about to bloom and I was right there in the middle, witnessing the whole event. I felt like gathering all of those kids into my arms and hug them tightly. None of the kids knew what they were up against and each of them were enjoying and living the moment on their own sweet way. On a cynical note, if not that, then what is it worth, felt as if they are all getting ready to be straitjacketed into the societal norms, harnessing their wild, raw spirit and making them all factory ready. Nothing but my own reflections on our schooling system. But, going with the tide has always been the way to go.