Real-Life Lessons To Go

Once in awhile you are overcome with acute nostalgia and the past comes alive for some fleeting moments. There you see yourself in vivid colors doing the things that you never have imagined you were capable of doing.

I came into this world without my consent and began to understand what its like to grow up in a family of 9 siblings, (5 bro and 4 sis) when I was 7 years old. I have no recollection of years 1 to 6 except what they said about me...”cute little wild boy.”

Home was not a place where I could stay for long. One foot was always outside the door. You can call me an outsider always itching to go out to hang out with other kids in the neighborhood. "Birds of the same feathers flock together." In the streets you learn the smarts. You become a street smart.

I remember my Grade 2 schoolteacher embarrassing me in front of my classmates for placing a small live lizard on top of the head of a girl classmate. She screamed so hard and became hysterical. My intention was honorable. I thought girls love lizards. I could not even remember her name. That was my first encounter with this thing called “guilt.” A feeling that I have done something awfully wrong.

In a small town where my parents used to live, word travels like wildfire. The girl classmate got her justice. I got whacked in my butt twice from a disciplinarian Dad when I came home. The whacking did not hurt that much. The grounding for two weeks was like being stranded in the Sahara desert with no water to drink.

It became abundantly loud and clear that you are disciplined when you are out of line. And being a “bravado” is not a substitute for politeness. "Do unto others as you would have others do unto you.” Briefly stated, “just be nice.”

Learning is a process and the love of it was early ingrained in my noggin. Doing home work regularly and reading comics, action and adventure stories were part of this process. Learning continues uninterrupted. Today or any day I am learning and there is always something to learn.

Breezed through Elementary Grade Schools with flying colors, so to speak. Blowing your own horn is not the intent. I thought I was number one and deserved to be Valedictorian. Coming in second as Salutatorian (whatever that means) was the first big upset. It did not hit me at that time what it really meant. Defeat was not in my vocabulary.

Later on I came to realize that “no matter how smart you are, there’s always someone who is smarter than you are .” This very early lesson has humbled and taught me to accept things as they are no matter how difficult when they come.

A “hubris” does not deserve a niche in my world.