Days of the yore...

The school days are indeed the best days of one’s life. Not a single day passes when I don’t think of the yesteryears at school. There are many magical moments in one’s life like the years of graduation, the first job offer letter or one’s first salary. Yet, to me, the days at school will always be the most wonderful time spent.
I can vividly recollect those games periods, the class tests, the annual function, sports day and cluster meets, lunch hour games, morning assembly, the house activities, quarterly, half yearly and annual exams, the independence and republic day celebrations, sunday morning cricket in the school grounds or in some friend’s house, the library hours and the discussions, bullying around with people, all the double meanings and the cricket and WWE card games (one that came free with Big Babol!). Getting ready five minutes before the final bell and then racing our bicycles to reach just in time for the morning assembly, gorging the lunch as fast as possible to spare time for cricket or table tennis, coming home after a school fight with bruised knees and elbows and then covering up for friends, the joy of playing in the rain with the lurking fear of being scolded at home, fright of being thrown out of class for misbehavior or incomplete homework etc. are the things that really symbolize the school life (excuse me if I have missed out something!).
Some of these are very specific to my case but I am sure everyone has a story to tell. Just scribbling down the thoughts is making me nostalgic! One major difference back then was that we were not as independent as we are now. We had parents to blame for everything. We were frowned upon for our wrongdoings and suggestions and advice from parents didn’t hurt our ego as much! There was hardly anything we couldn’t tell mom and dad. There were no tensions or responsibilities (except the exams time, ofcourse!).
My English teacher often said that school days are the best days of one’s life but it is in our innate nature that we don’t understand the importance of something until it is gone forever. Back then we felt that it was just a ruse to keep us interested and motivated and nothing more.
Today, as I lay back and think of those beautiful days, I realize how much things have changed. That innocence, that carefree attitude towards life, the ability to live in the present and not give a thought to what will happen a few years down the line, relishing as small a thing as chocolate distribution on birthdays or the thrill of getting a free cricket bat with some health drink.
Well, this is life and it moves on. Now, we have to think of jobs, internships, future plans, career path; the list is endless. I believe the right thing to do would be to keep a track of all these things but at the same time not forget to enjoy the moment at hand, the present; else life would just slip away like loose sand.
‘And in the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years.’ – Abraham Lincoln.
Cheers to this moment!
Piyush.