The Turning Point

A boy from a middle class family got 96% marks in his 10th examination. His father happily shared this news with his wife and asked her to make a sweet porridge for the son. She came running from kitchen to see the marksheet.

The boy laughed out loud, “How can you read, mom? You are illiterate.”
She quietly left with tearful eyes to make the porridge.

His father then coolly replied,
“Yes, my son, your mom is illiterate, because she got pregnant within three months of marriage, and despite my insistence to visit various places in South India, as I had already got tickets booked, she declined because of you.

She didn’t like milk at all, but used to have milk every day for full nine months to make you healthy, because she is illiterate.

She used to wake up at five in the morning to make your favorite breakfast and tiffin box, because she is illiterate.

When you used to fall asleep while studying at night, she would come and safely place your copies and books in your satchel, cover you with a sheet and only then sleep.

She always insisted to get you branded clothes, while staying on the same set of sarees for years together, because she is illiterate.

She forgets to eat herself sometimes after cooking and serving food to us. That’s why I proudly say that your mother is illiterate.

And finally, you never bothered to know that she can read and write both in Hindi and English, as I have myself tutored her with the help of your books, but she doesn’t retort, because she is illiterate.”

The boy started crying and clung to his mother. We may or may not realise it, but for her kids, a mother is the first teacher.

This story is of a boy who was getting ready to be admitted to the 11th standard, when most of the students shift from school to college. This is the stage when both both boy or girl and parents should be a little more cautious.

This is the stage, when one is in the prime of one’s teens, full of energy and creativity, along with tempers and tantrums. Insulting parents and elderly people and getting angry for petty reasons are not uncommon.

This is the time when teenagers find a vast sky open for themselves to do and think a lot of things. First crush, infatuation and love pangs also start at this juncture .

This happened to me too. I started outing and wasting time and energy on so many worthless things. On a single day, I visited three theatres to watch three different movies.

My result of 12th standard was not as good as that of 10th standard. Then there was a topper of his previous school, who was admitted to my class, but passed 12th standard with third division. The same thing happened to my own son.

I can’t tell you what kinds of deceptive allurements and temptations I got during that critical phase. It’s by the grace of God, or may be due to my family’s Sanskar (early upbringing), that I came through unscathed, with necessary course correction in the nick of time.

But here is a disclaimer. What I have experienced in my life may not be true for most of the people. I have shared my experience here, just as a caution, nothing else.

–Kaushal Kishore

images: pixabay