It was a breezy afternoon when I asked my excited learners:
“Who was the first Prime Minister of India?”
Even though Cather knew the answer, she always seemed
hesitant to respond. When I beckoned at her, she could only mumble. Cather
wanted to answer. I could see that eagerness in her eyes. However, under the
waiting gaze of all the other students in the class, she felt anxious and scared.
Having got nothing but silence from her, I asked Cather to sit down. As though on a cue, the lunch bell rang. Everyone rushed out
to play, except Cather.
She sat in the class alone and quietly ate her food. I called out to her; she did not move for a second. Then
very slowly she walked up to me. Cather was apprehensive of being pulled up for
not answering. She knew where she was lacking and thus felt anxious and unsure. I handed over a slim book (from my little collection in the
Teacher’s drawer) and requested her to read it.
The name of the book was ‘Courage’. It narrated a story about a seagull who wanted to fly but
feared to do so. Despite the best efforts of its family and loved ones, the
seagull was terrified of using its wings. It thought that it would fall if it
ever tried to fly. I was certain that Cather would relate to the seagull, as I
saw her settle down with the book. In
In the story, the seagull mustered courage, moved up towards the edge of the cliff, near its nest, and jumped off it. Initially, the little
bird nosedived straight down, sure of a rather painful injury, if not death.
However, just when it was about to touch the ground, something magical
happened.
Something inside the seagull made it spread its wings and
fly; and fly it did – really high! The seagull had patiently borne its weaknesses
and had finally mustered the courage to overcome them. It perfectly embodied
the values of patience and courage, which could magically transform lives.
Cather now knew exactly what she had to do. When the class
returned after the break, she raised her hand to say something in front of the
class. As I encouraged her with a nod, she took a deep breath and answered
with conviction: “Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru was the first Prime Minister of
India”.
The entire class clapped with joy, seeing this new confidence in Cather while she grinned with the radiance of self-discovery. Just like the baby seagull, she had gathered courage at the opportune moment. Just like Dr A.P.J.Abdul Kalam had said “The bird is powered by its own life and by its motivation.”
Penta @ Billabong International High School, Thane
-Jeeji Sanjeev, Sanika Joshi, Arpita M.G., Muskaan Menda, Radhika Anand, Supriya Naravankar & Bhavani Swamy.