Unfulfilled Dreams - A Blessing in Disguise
Unable to nap, I was just watching a show on Netflix.
Revolving around the school life of a young teenaged girl, it was her journey
through life: fighting adolescent obesity, puberty, boyfriends (or the lack of
it) and I’m amazed at the speed it transported me back to my teen school years.
Young, scrawny, painfully shy and recently migrated to a
co-ed High school. This shift to a public school was so obvious that my
classmates immediately picked it up!
Day 1 itself, I was pulled up umpteen number of times while
walking up the stairs to reach my class on the 3rd floor with a,
“Hey you, straight from a girls’ school are you?” with a smirk and a knowing
grin. It made me wonder if like the movie Deewar, it was tattooed on my
forehead or what?
Thankfully, I was put out of my misery by my newly acquired
friend, another newcomer. As we walked up to our class, she looked at me and
said, “Hmmm, which convent school are you coming from?” Oh no, here we go
again. At my puzzled look, she took pity on me and said, “Only someone studying
in an all-girl school is unaware of the perils of wearing a short skirt and climbing
a staircase along the banister!!” As I continued to look totally flabbergasted,
she asked me to look up, gently steered me closer towards the wall-end of the
steps and said, “Welcome to Co-Ed school”!!! Cheeks flaming red, I learnt a
valuable lesson which has stayed with me till today! (For those who haven’t got
it, I suggest you try it out to understand the full import of such a situation)
It was such a different experience… In my old school, we
only talked about boys and here I was surrounded by them! The equation was even
better in our Maths class where we were 4 girls and 10 boys. And I must add here,
Hollywood/ Bollywood have got it right. There is always this one boy who will
be a cut and shoulders above the rest. Tall, handsome, athletic types with a
to-die for smile. We were ready to kill for him. It was all for naught as few
months later he broke our heart when he introduced us to his girlfriend.
Fast forward and 20 years later, Facebook entered my life!
By now, married with 2 young children, residing in Bangalore and more than a
little cut off from my school friends! In an attempt to locate them, I “bumped
into him”. The unusual name leapt of the screen taking me back to the 1980s.
Happily married but nevertheless, eager to re-connect with the “man of my
dreams”, I clicked on the name! I was breathless in anticipation… for the smoky
eyes, rugged looks and the clefted chin. I almost hyperventilated at the onscreen
image!
He looked straight at me in his round glasses, with puffy
cheeks and (I still can’t believe it ☹) multiple chins!!! In a
stupor, I clicked on one image after the other hoping it was all a bad joke but
no such luck. It was HIM alright. Quietly I logged out, hunted out the hubby
and gave him one extra tight hug.
A bird in hand is definitely better than
multiple chins in my dreams!
13.09.20
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