Pa(u)ls rev it up

THOSE WERE the best days of our lives - the school days when life was one lilting song. Those pranks, the innocent queries and endless moments of fun. The tiffin boxes that were shared, not to forget those whacks from the teacher!

The princely pocket money, a rupee at best, but heavy enough to buy those small pleasures in the company of friends - a cinema ticket, those tangy orange candies on a push cart in front of the school, a novel on hire, a bicycle ride along the school lane and yes, your share for buying a cricket ball for a match with the boys from the next class.

If only time stopped ticking then.... sigh!

This class began as usual. The students stood up reverently as the teachers walked in. As they looked around, there were gleaming faces in front. The elderly teacher greeted them lovingly, "Good morning children!" One backbencher hollered: "Ma'am, I didn't bring my biology record book". Loud laughter reverberates the room.

That was the reunion of the batch of '75 of St. Paul's High School, Hyderguda, after 25 full years and yes, full of fun and heart-warming moments. Old comrades seeing each other - apprising their appearances, some beyond recognition, some just the same. From pimple-faced teenagers and pencil-thin moustaches, they had become parents themselves and what more have children walking along the college corridors today. Life's one full circle, eh? "How much life changes," they all sighed in unison.

One of the elderly teachers, in the prime of fitness and looking extremely athletic, stared at one of his stocky pupil and remarked: "You really look like a heavy duty vehicle, maan!" while the latter could only squirm and smile. As usual, the teacher had done his homework. His portly student works as a motor vehicle inspector in Anantapur district!!

One teacher smiled: "I hope you are all married". Someone said everyone was barring one. In the same breath, another chipped in: "I saw him strolling on the Tank Bund with someone yesterday and I'm sure he'll get married shortly", bringing the house down.

Needless to say, there was bonhomie and camaraderie as the exulted old pals went on a trip down the memory lane. "For the first few minutes, there were a series of sighs and more sighs. We were just chatting away. It took quite some time before we could settle down," laughed V. Nagesh, one of the organisers of the reunion meet. "We struck a rapport in no time and events from the past flashed across us, one after the other," remarked Vivek, who is into leather business.

"There are no words to describe the reunion," a beaming police officer, Navin Chand, remarked. Encountering his old chum who was paranoid about crossing the busy Narayanguda road, he asked him teasingly, "have you learnt to cross the road at least now. Hyderabad traffic has grown by leaps and bound...."

A content teacher went on: "I'm happy to see my students make it big as doctors, engineers, software programmers...." A backbencher joined in chorus and yelled, "contractors, real estate agents and brokers..."

But, how did it all start? "We broached the idea with the other classmates in town. Everyone was extremely excited at the prospect of meeting again. The very thought was invigourating," recalls Karunaker Reddy, one of the organisers.

And three full years was what it took for the thought to be translated into reality. "We had to first dig out the addresses of our friends scattered all over. Fishing them out from the school records itself took a whole month," says Nagesh. Letters were dispatched, phone calls made. Again and again. "Much to our delight, everyone immediately agreed," he recalls.

They had to. Afterall, friends are forever. And what better day than the Friend's Day to meet and rewind the rolling tape of time for those good ole' days.

By K.V.S. Madhav

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Section  : Southern States
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