When I Visited My School Last Time

Schools are one of the few places that remain the same against the flow of time. Most of the schools I have ever visited are still the same – the buildings, the offices, the labs, the lavatories, the drinking water tap, the ground, and even the paints. Many adults visit their school on a regular basis to feel nostalgia and recollect old memories. A few months ago, I was invited by my school to give a presentation on Early Leadership Development. I felt extremely honored and excited to visit my school where I spent 14 years of my life. I have always been deeply attached to my school. When I was heading towards my school, it was around 9:30 in the morning. As I was walking past the roads and the alleys – I began to realize that the shops we used to buy things from have been replaced by other new shops. It was a strange feeling for me. I remember, I would walk on those roads with tremendous self-confidence, but now I felt as if I was lost. I reached my school at around 9:45, and there I first saw our beloved gatekeeper daai. His name is Raajkumar, I had taught him to play table tennis, and he had improved a lot too. I asked him whether he still plays table tennis, he said that ever since we left, he has never touched a racket. I don’t know why but my heart was shattered. I asked him if the principal was in his office, he said he was, and I headed towards the principal office. My feet knew where the office was. As I took those familiar steps, I could not process what was in front of my eyes. For 14 years, I studied in a single-story building school that had blue steel roof. We could read “HULAS STEEL” imprinted on the roof if we looked up from our classroom. Suddenly, I was in front of a U-shaped 5-storey building. The ground area had become small. The hall where we competed, learned, and developed ourselves was destroyed. To be real, everything had changed except a few teachers who taught me were still there. I met them, talked to them about their lives and realized even their behavior had changed. A teacher who would slap me almost daily because I never did my homework assigned by me was saying tapai to me. I felt like an alien there. After we finished the session, I met with my juniors, and they loaded me with tons of questions. They didn’t inquire anything about the topic I was speaking on rather they asked about me, though. I happily spent time with them. They were very happy that the school they study in was upgraded significantly – the labs, the canteen, the library (we only had a bookshelf in every class), everything had upgraded. After everything was done, I left. The school I had in my memory has already been replaced by the new school’s appearance. It is the place which sculpted almost every part of me. The place where I got my best friends, learned majority of what I know till today, unlocked my strengths, and built my overall character – is simply blown from there like dust. I wish to never go there again.