The Boy.......

The scooter stop in front of the school and as per the routine the boy got off said bye to his father and begun the climb to the school. The boy was studying in the first standard. As he entered his class me met his friends and thus began the pandemonium in the classroom. Sister Grace entered the class and all the children got up to wish her. The day went on like any other day for the boy until before lunch. 

"Boy, i can see you talking. Stand up on the bench" said sister grace. The boy did as he was asked to. But he was clearly embarrassed. "How could sister do that?" he thought. "After all she knows my mother". The boy's mother was teaching in a school run by the same congregation and everyone in this particular school especially the nuns knew her.  The boy has been punished for the first time. So far he had only watched his friends getting that treatment. He was the "good" boy of the class, and his getting caught by the teacher was indeed embarrassing. 

The lunch bell rang. As the students made their way to wash hands and open their carriers to have lunch, the boy decided that he will not sit for the afternoon class. He was angry that he had been put to through such a treatment. So he met his neighbour a boy in the 7th standard and asked him if he can take him home. "Our teachers have a meeting, and hence we are having a holiday in the afternoon" said the boy. The 7th standard agreed to take him home. On reaching home, the maid was surprised to see him come so early in the afternoon. But the boy gave the maid the same reason. 

After lunch the boy sat down too watch the carpenter who was making a table in the boy's house. It soon became evening and mother came from her school. She too was surprised to see the boy  so early from school. "Teachers meeting" the boy answered when he was asked by his mother. The mother was not convinced. Guru the boy's classmate and neighbour was walking towards his house after class. Mother saw him and asked him where was he coming from. " Aunty, from school, why hadn't Ashwin come". Mother now was furious and hurt that her son said such a big lie and was daring enough to come home after cutting classes. She confronted the boy  who was now scared. "Let daddy came" she said. Now the boy realised the situation he was in. Fortunately for him, the boy knew that his father will come late. So he had early dinner and went off to sleep.

The next day was  a public holiday. The boy got up had tea and was in front of the TV. And then it came, the call from his father. "What did you do yesterday?" asked father. Now the boy was scared and almost in tears. As his father landed the first blow in a jute stick, the boy got angry. He immediately grabbed that stick and broke it into two. Then he ran out of the house and his father came chasing him. This running around went on for sometime until the mother and the maid managed to catch him and brought the boy to the father. What followed were a series of shots. The father made the boy stand on the table and continued a with a few more. Then suddenly the father hugged the crying boy and wept.   He then took him down and applied medicine to the marks on the body of the boy. He then asked his son not to repeat it again and told him how hurt he was because of this action of the boy. He also told him that he felt extremely bad beating up the boy. " I do it because i love you". That day went by.

The next day the boy was dropped to the school by his father. He was now scared of his teacher and the headmistress. The father told the boy " I am not coming. You should face the consequences of your actions". On reaching the class he was summoned by the headmistress who by now had punished the 7th standard boy. She called the boy to her side and warned his nicely not to repeat such and act......

The boy was me of course..... a memory which will always remain with me and my parents. My dad always tells me that what he did that day was wrong and said that beating children was definitely not the way to bring them up. This is indeed a lesson i will carry with me :)