To envy, anguish and friendship
Needless to say the reopening day of a college is always marked by a high degree of crankiness. Half the battle is already lost if the first hour happens to be Ethics. We were lucky in this case though, as the faculty in charge, Prof. Radhika ma’am prefers taking a practical and interactive approach.
Reopening days are actually a boon for people like me. It helps get back your focus after what has been a sotally tober vacation. For instance you realize that fifty percent of the class is already placed and you belong to the other fifty percent jobless tribe.
It also doesn’t help when your preferences are too narrow. It was again one of those evenings today when I was too concerned about getting my preferred job.
Just then I got a call from my longtime school friend, Santosh. He too studies in the same college ( in a different campus though) and got placed in a growing financial services organisation for a good package.
On the surface all of it looks pretty normal. But you need to go through his backstory to comprehend what this guy is truly made of.
I vividly remember, the look on his face when it was the paper showing day for all the 11-thers. Santosh had failed in the average of 3 subjects which meant he had to repeat the year again.
He chose to join the National Open Affiliated School (NOS) at our school premises itself to avoid repeating the year again. For the next one year he practically gave up on all his social commitments. He used to rarely meet us and that too only the few close to him. I was one of them.
His hardwork paid off and he was among the top three in his school. Santosh also prepared sincerely for the entrance exams. I remember hating him each time he used to call me and ask what I was doing to crack these tests. In my usual fashion I would reply with some made up BS as I hardly prepared for any of them.
He had the same hunger in Christ as well as he was sure from the beginning what he wanted.
Coming back to the call, it is not that he had some inspirational words for me. He is a simple and straightforward guy. The type with whom what you see is what you get. But the call reminded me his story of which I have been a part as well.
Its great to look back sometimes and see how far both of us have come.
Way to go my friend. Cheers.
