Florence English School
Ahh... how do I even start? I must first say that I was very fortunate
to have been here when I was. I met some of the best people I will ever
know here. I was taught by quite a few good teachers, and I understood
myself for the first time.
I vividly remember walking to and back from school daily, with a motley
group of peers. We used to have great fun harassing younger kids on
their way home. We would try out new swear words on each other.
Occasionally, there would be fist-fights. I also remember getting to
school early so we could throw the ball
around, or play cricket.
Everyday, we used to stand in line at the
gates to be let into school, while the P.E. teacher (a real mean s-o-b
he was!) checked our uniforms. They had to be creaselessly ironed, our
shoes had to shine, and the belt around the waist was to be
appropriately tight. Oh, and how could I forget. Nails had to be
clipped. Failure to comply led to some sweet punishment. A
couple of raps on the knuckles, and in particular cases of
intransigence, a visit to the Principal's office.
Ahh! That brings me to the Principal. If there was ever someone I
hated, feared and loathed all at the same time, it had to be that
Principal of ours. He once slapped me so hard I thought my cheek would
burst open and start sprouting blood all over him. Why did he slap me?
Because I was scrounging around in the trash bin near school. Okay. May
be I deserved it... but, why was I doing what I was doing? Well, my
`sources' at school told me that the paper for the day's English exam
had been leaked. Some copies of it were still to be found near the
trash can. So, me and my friends set to work, and who should we meet
but the Devil himself.
In my case, punishment was never restricted to outside the
classroom. I regularly got it good from the teachers. Especially from
the Hindi teachers. I guess I loved Hindi too much. But still classes
were too much fun, and I enjoyed every moment. Well... most of it, at
least.
B.C., Brahma, Harsha, Manju, P.P., Sharath, Vinod... and many more
friends. They made it worthwhile.
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