Teacher's Day

I, like everyone else, have had numerous teachers through my school and college years. I had teachers outside the formal environment – coaching classes, music classes, dance classes, cooking classes – in the semi-formal environments. It is the norm to remember one’s best teachers in the formal or semi-formal environment on this day – to me it was the elderly music teacher at school who made me aware of my abilities; the Maths teacher in high school who apart from teaching excellent Maths taught me presentation skills that shaped my career; the math tuition teacher who treated me like her child and made sure I did well in all subjects; the English teacher at school who took personal interest in my non-academic abilities and pushed the lazy me to become a well-rounded person. Many of them I am not in touch with today. A couple of them have left the mortal world and I remember them very often.

I, however, also remember the conventionally not so good teachers. And I thank them from the bottom of my heart for being there. Be it the person who hated her job so much that she had spared no mercy for four-year old tiny tots whom she slapped without any apparent reason; the lady who taught wrong things and had the heart to say “Go to your mother’s school” to any child who tried to do her homework correctly; or the men whose inferiority complexes were evident in the way they treated 10-12 year olds; and the creepy souls who awarded less marks for no reason and spoiled careers - it is to them that I owe my ability to revere the good ones.

But, most of all, I always believe that every person whom I have ever encountered has knowingly or unknowingly taught me something. I have learnt from people from all walks of life. My friends, my colleagues, my superiors, my immediate and extended family, my neighbours, random people on the road, in the trains, in the market… just about anyone and everyone everywhere. The sincerity of the domestic help, the serenity of evidently the most unhappy extended family member, the resilience of a family who did exceedingly well in life after an accident that literally changed their faces by making them undergo plastic surgeries, the dedication of a vet couple who treat street dogs without expecting anything in return,… I can just go on and on. Observing these people has taught me how to live life – inculcating even a few of these qualities in myself will take me a lifetime.

Again, there are the ones who taught me what not to be. These people seemed to say, “See what will be of you, if you ever be like me!” These people have been as good teachers as the others. It almost is like a divine design – each human being is different – each human being has the free will to learn and rise. Often a single person teaches so much of “be like me” and “don’t be like me” at the same time! The “Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde” that manifests itself in such a balanced manner in all human beings is a blessing. It is just about being aware and wanting to take them as teachers.

On this Teacher’s day, I thank all fellow human beings, for just being there and for being themselves!