College... and Beyond!

Like all the girls of my age, all I wanted was to grow up and go to college. Somehow, the prospect of shedding the stiff uniform, complete with a tie and blazer, for a cooler, more glamorous dress, looked appealing. So when the results of Class 10 was out I ventured out into the new World looking for that perfect college. I did have a fairly good score, as far as marks were concerned and hence I was able to get admission into one of the best colleges in Bangalore – Jyoti Nivas.

Strangely, although I yearned for the first day of college, a strange fear loomed large in my thoughts. I had to leave the corridors that had seen me grow from a toddler to a young woman, I had to leave the protective arms of my teachers, I had to venture out of my home of 13 years leaving behind all my friends! Of course there was that fear of ragging.. although the college authorities vehemently denied that their students engaged in this practice, it was secretly carried out to perfection!

The first day of college dawned bright and sunny, and I walked down to the bus-stop, books in hand, smartly dressed, ready to take the plunge into the second half of my student life. The college bus was supposed to arrive at 7:50AM, it would wait in the bus stop for about 15 minutes and then take off to reach college on time at 9:00AM. I had seen the students wait for the bus, envied their careless laughter, and admired their colorful clothes and strikingly good looks. Now, being a part of that crowd seemed a little unnerving for me.

I slowly approached the crowd and stood in the Q hiding my presence as much as possible, for the fear of ragging. In less than 2 minutes, I was identified as a “fresher”. Probably, my nervousness stood out like a sore thumb! Instantly, all eyes were on me, and the gals moved closer to get a quick introduction. I was asked to introduce myself, giving details of my school, my favorite subject, the course I had opted for in college and the reasons for choosing those subjects. That was a fairly easy task, but my confidence levels had hit the rock bottom, for the fear of what might come next.

Sure enough, there was more! There were a bunch of hapless souls like myself, who were also waiting with baited breath for their single task, as a part of ragging. We were told that if we could carry out a single task that the “seniors” asked us to do, to perfection, we would be left to our own devices. The seniors moved from one to another, allocating tasks to each of us. The tasks ranged from proposing marriage to a cobbler who worked at the bus-stop, to going around the bus – stop hopping on one leg, or better still, blind-folded!

When it was my turn, I began sweating in anticipation of the worst. Well my task was to get the handsome guy who was waiting at one end of the bus-stop to carry my bag for me and till the college bus arrived.. That would be for at least 10 minutes! Slowly I walked to the end of the bus-stop with at least a dozen pairs of eyes following me closely. All I had to do was to stretch my hand with the bag, no words spoken; the smart guy just took my bag and slung it across his shoulders, without any other reaction. The girls at the bus-stop were amazed! Not only did this guy hold my bag till the college bus came by, he handed over the bag to me through the window, only when I was comfortably seated inside. Now, that drew a big applause from the gals in the bus! The applause eased out the tension and we were soon chatting like long – lost friends! “How did you do it?”, they asked in unison, and I just smiled and shrugged in response. What would they do, if they knew that the “smart guy” was my good friend of 7 years!!

College life, unlike school was much more fun, with the extra freedom that we were allowed given the fact that we were not school girls anymore. Soon, College had become a second home! We graduated from being “freshers” to “seniors”. We enjoyed every minute of our stay in this wonderful institution, right from screaming till our voices got sore to cheer our college at the inter-collegiate events to the hush- hush preparations for teachers day, to the occasional slips from classes, to the last minute cramming before the exams, we had a complete fun-filled learning experience!

That was 11 years ago! Last month, I walked my daughter into my college just to show her the place where I studied; I was struck by a deep sense of nostalgia. I relived the five glorious years that I had spent there, walking by my classrooms, pausing to sit for a minute on my favorite desk and peeping into the various staff-rooms, hoping to see a familiar face. As I strolled across to the library, I caught sight of my Commerce lecturer. She had become much older now, but I am sure she taught her subject with the same zest that she did 11 years ago. She looked up and she seemed to recognize me immediately. “You belong to the 1996 batch right?” I was floored by her remarkable memory! “ Your batch was the best batch, so lively and full of fun”, she continued. The warmth with which she enquired about me and the liveliness with which she spoke to my daughter and enquired about my other batch mates, left me spell-bound!

“This is the college that I studied in”, I explained to my daughter. My daughter looked around and asked me “Mom, how long will it take for me to finish school and come to college?”