I was born in a narrow lane called Shyamlal Ji Lane. It was not too narrow. It was around two yards wide. There was an open drain along one side. Both the sides had a cluster of a few huts and very high rise buildings. It also acted as a bypass between two major roads connected by it. It had a grocery shop, a studio, a mobile repairing shop, a financial consultancy office, a tea shop, among others. The most important building it had was a school. The school was called District Language High School. The past or present of the lane would have been drastically different had the uncanny school not been there.
I grew up in the lane knowing more and more about the school. It was a great source of information regarding the human nature for an animal like me. Although there were quite a few more dogs in the lane, I had the congenital ability to understand the human language_ particularly the one spoken in the neighborhood. I did not look very distinguished. So, nobody noticed me except for the children in the lane who would tease me and other dogs. My proper name was Shyamlal. I behaved almost like my other canine friends. During summers I used to sit in the open drain to cool myself, although the lane was cooler than the rest of the surrounding area thanks to the high rise buildings on the either side of it. The winters were very cruel. Somehow I survived a few winters. It is because the lane hardly received any sunshine except for during the noon.
All types of people lived in the neighborhood. However, as some summers and winters passed, I saw a positive change among them. They continued to be more modern.
The grand school was not too old. Perhaps, it was built in the middle of the 20th century. I heard people say that the school was started somewhere else_ far away from its present location. The founders did not have enough money to provide for the infrastructure. Therefore, they had to seek donations from the members of the rich and philanthropic community living in the neighborhood. This community is still regarded as a very charitable one. It has built and operates countless schools, colleges, hospitals, etc. in the country . The founder-teachers used to contribute from their meager salary for the development and promotion of the school like buying benches, bricks, etc. The teachers in the days of the nascent stage of the school were from a particular region of the country.
The grand school had the capacity of a grand students. A few teachers disappeared, and a few new faces started coming and going everyday. The present was much different from the past. The students almost stopped greeting the teachers. Once I heard a new teacher say that the two students of the sixth standard were doing such things that he could not even understand how to react and deal with the situation. A few years later I heard the teachers gossiping that a student who had abused another student verbally was asked to bring his guardian. He brought his guardian the next day, but the lady had a different complaint, and purpose of the visit. She said that the teacher had abused her son instead. It was clear that the student had lied to his mother!
The change of syllabus caused another discomfort for the teachers. The students had to submit a project report for each subject of study. They had to submit it much before the selection or final test, but they would not. The teachers had to try for months requesting the students to submit the report. Many a times they had to even call the students over telephone again and again. Many times the students would lie that they had already submitted the report. I wonder why did the students behave like this! Wasn't it for their own benefit? What if the teachers did not work so hard to call them? Would they not fail, if their marks on project not sent to the right place before the right time? God knows why they call themselves the king of the animal kingdom! We do everything for our own benefit. We eat, play, rest, love, fight for ourselves. If the humans made education as the basis of competition, why do the students not like it? I also heard many teachers saying many a times that some students were quite the opposite. They studied very well. They were very civilized. They took the education sincerely with dedication.
I have a far lesser life span as compared to that of humans, but I feel it was long enough to know and understand about a school; its grand students; and its teachers. I would depart sooner or later, but, possibly, my progeny would be here with the same ability that I have.
Disclaimer:
The above story is utterly fictional, and has no direct or indirect relation with any person or entity_ dead or alive. Any similarity may be considered as a coincidence.
I grew up in the lane knowing more and more about the school. It was a great source of information regarding the human nature for an animal like me. Although there were quite a few more dogs in the lane, I had the congenital ability to understand the human language_ particularly the one spoken in the neighborhood. I did not look very distinguished. So, nobody noticed me except for the children in the lane who would tease me and other dogs. My proper name was Shyamlal. I behaved almost like my other canine friends. During summers I used to sit in the open drain to cool myself, although the lane was cooler than the rest of the surrounding area thanks to the high rise buildings on the either side of it. The winters were very cruel. Somehow I survived a few winters. It is because the lane hardly received any sunshine except for during the noon.
All types of people lived in the neighborhood. However, as some summers and winters passed, I saw a positive change among them. They continued to be more modern.
The grand school was not too old. Perhaps, it was built in the middle of the 20th century. I heard people say that the school was started somewhere else_ far away from its present location. The founders did not have enough money to provide for the infrastructure. Therefore, they had to seek donations from the members of the rich and philanthropic community living in the neighborhood. This community is still regarded as a very charitable one. It has built and operates countless schools, colleges, hospitals, etc. in the country . The founder-teachers used to contribute from their meager salary for the development and promotion of the school like buying benches, bricks, etc. The teachers in the days of the nascent stage of the school were from a particular region of the country.
The grand school had the capacity of a grand students. A few teachers disappeared, and a few new faces started coming and going everyday. The present was much different from the past. The students almost stopped greeting the teachers. Once I heard a new teacher say that the two students of the sixth standard were doing such things that he could not even understand how to react and deal with the situation. A few years later I heard the teachers gossiping that a student who had abused another student verbally was asked to bring his guardian. He brought his guardian the next day, but the lady had a different complaint, and purpose of the visit. She said that the teacher had abused her son instead. It was clear that the student had lied to his mother!
The change of syllabus caused another discomfort for the teachers. The students had to submit a project report for each subject of study. They had to submit it much before the selection or final test, but they would not. The teachers had to try for months requesting the students to submit the report. Many a times they had to even call the students over telephone again and again. Many times the students would lie that they had already submitted the report. I wonder why did the students behave like this! Wasn't it for their own benefit? What if the teachers did not work so hard to call them? Would they not fail, if their marks on project not sent to the right place before the right time? God knows why they call themselves the king of the animal kingdom! We do everything for our own benefit. We eat, play, rest, love, fight for ourselves. If the humans made education as the basis of competition, why do the students not like it? I also heard many teachers saying many a times that some students were quite the opposite. They studied very well. They were very civilized. They took the education sincerely with dedication.
I have a far lesser life span as compared to that of humans, but I feel it was long enough to know and understand about a school; its grand students; and its teachers. I would depart sooner or later, but, possibly, my progeny would be here with the same ability that I have.
Disclaimer:
The above story is utterly fictional, and has no direct or indirect relation with any person or entity_ dead or alive. Any similarity may be considered as a coincidence.
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