Fortune???

Misfortune never comes single, so they say…. what of fortune? I for once have had an overdose of fortune for a day. I get up late for college, miss the college bus and am in a predicament - to use the city bus to reach college, bunk college or to use one of my bikes to reach college. If I use the city bus(I have to use three buses), which I obviously detest, I will be late for college anyways losing almost 500 bucks as loss of pay. If I bunked college, I would lose almost 1000 rupees as loss of pay, which naturally was and is not to my liking at all. What of my bikes then, one might as well as ask…Well….one of my bikes has not cleared the FC inspection and has got no papers certifying it to be used on road. I did not want to take any risks with the law enforcers by using that. The other bike is the mighty Yamaha RD350, which munches miles like it is made to do that only and drinks petrol like a Viking. If I used that I must shell out at least 500 rupees again. Such was my situation. I finally rolled the beast out, perched upon it forlornly and rode it like the devil was after me. Boy! Did it fly! It set the road on fire. Thirty minutes to cover forty kilometres in mediocre traffic. Not bad for the beast!! I reach on time. Fortune number one.I get a call from one of my brothers asking me to pick him up from the airport at five. He did not want to take a taxi and waste money. The luggage he had, required the assistance of two people, courtesy my youngest bro and I. I had the beast with me. The other bike, we call it the pooch, the one without papers, was at home with the youngest one. He is a rookie. The bike is powerful. Did not want him to feed the filth on the way to ride that bike, because a lot were standing to collect whatever they might find to fill their uniformed garbage cans from unwary motorists and poor truck drivers, bringing defamy to the glorious image of India. I had no other option. The rookie was asked to come - slow and careful. I reached on time followed by the kid, grinning from ear to ear because he had come unscathed. We reached home safe. Fortune number two. The beast had actually softened and given a mileage of around 20 kmpl!!!A miracle. Fortune number three.

Work spot tidbits...

To work with women is difficult, especially so if there is struggle for power among them and one gets himself caught in the crossfire. To please one and rub the other one on the wrong side would be to invite disaster whereas to please both would definitely land one in deep and troubled waters. To slip away from the scene discreetly might backfire ending up in the rival parties partying together with the noose falling on one’s own neck. No amount of caution would enable a man to be safe while in such a situation. The negative effect is manifold when wielded by a woman, more so if handled out of jealousy or revenge. There is yet another dangerous breed out there. They speak good of you to others. They shine in your eyes as the epitome of goodness and well-wishing. Alas! If only it lasted for a bit more! Tragedy will be swift when such creatures in order to keep their conscience clear, twist and distort every single word that one utters and every act of benevolence is clearly portrayed and magnified into an act of malevolence. Beware of such nitwits……you’d better be…..for your own good.

Mentality

Almost all people love a good job. A job that would help them feed their families and get their desires accomplished. A person in a regular job spends his/her life mostly in the work spot. The place of work becomes a second home for many. Some come to work eagerly in order to avoid or to stay away from the pressures of household members. Some straggle into work revolting the necessity of work but unable to stay at home for fear of losing regular means of income. Into this scenario are found some pushed in by a tall wave, still being tossed about, not sure of what they are going to do in future. Then comes a select group that has come because of the love for the subject concerned. The people in that category are usually envied for they stand tall amongst the ruins. They have absolute confidence in their stream and they know what they teach. They believe in what they proclaim. They are strong. They usually do not compromise, for they need not. Others crave their help and attention. This is more so in the teaching field. They are the pillars of the institution that they work in. They are indispensable. The cog revolves around them. But alas! If only someone could peep into their mindset!! It is true that they are the best. It is a fact that they are sought after by almost all. Yet, the turmoil inside their heads is unbearable. Man is a social animal. He needs interaction. How can you expect a first grader to regularly hang out with a college graduate? This is the usual level of disparity. The Intellectuals run around trying to find someone….anyone…to share their thoughts with, in vain. The solace they need, the network of ease that anyone needs is denied to them. The privilege of leading a normal work life combined with learning is prohibited. They can never learn or expect to learn from such an environment. The institution sucks the life out of them and throws them out at last when it has drunk…..drunk them….to the lees. But no one in that group ever seems to be aware of this. They go as a sheep is led to be butchered. They realise the fact when the arrow pierces their livers. Alas!!!!! So many wasted lives.

English Language Teachers

There are countless numbers of meaningful meetings and conferences that have become meaningless because of the lack of commonsense and foresight. Sometimes, the necessity to prove one's worth to others or to the world makes one to take adverse steps by not heeding the warning signs and making one vulnerable to mistakes and sometimes blunders. I remember an incident that so rightly pops into my mind. It was a national level conference for English Teachers and Professors. Faculty members had come from all parts of the country. The event started on a positive note, with a couple of native speakers contributing to the richness and purpose of the meeting. Then came the time for paper presentations by the participants. They all talked about the necessity of changing the pattern of education followed in colleges in India. One must've heard them talk to believe that they really talked so. Such was the quality of their language that Shakespeare would have become Othello himself and Dr. Johnson would never have compiled his great initiative work. One cringed as one listened to the meaningless chatter that emanated from the mouth of the people who presented. To think that they were English Teachers was something incomprehensible. It would be a miracle if students could learn The Language from them. Aren't teachers of English supposed to be grammatically correct while conversing in English? Isn't that a common requirement? Where has the Quality of English Teachers gone? Isn't it a crying shame that there are many teachers of the English Language who cannot speak in the same language confidently without mistakes? They then become the butt of all jokes inside and outside the college campus and end up blaming the Management or the Quality of students and finally retire from their respectable positions in colleges and universities signalling a grinding halt to their miserable, fruitless life. There was a workshop given by an Associate Professor of English. God only knows how she became one, and of all surprises how she was chosen to be the resource person on that day, fateful for lovers of English. The Associate Professor did not know proper English, had no clue as to the use of a microphone and to top it all, she thought that she was doing a wonderful job as a speaker. The last point was evident from the manner in which she strutted around. Where, I ask, is the quality that is required now? Can't colleges and universities recruit candidates who know how to talk in English? Can't they take in someone who can deliver more than what the students need? Are there not people who can make a crowd swoon by their language skills? Why can't they be employed? Pay them well, I say, and retain them.Where did we go wrong? Where are we going wrong now? It is not the educational system. It is the lack of fire inside individuals. It is the case of people going to a job just for the sake of working. There is no heart in the subject, no love for the subject and practically no interest whatsoever. The change that needs to be implemented is the one that needs to happen within the teachers, not with some system that everyone blames. The Teacher must change, lead from the front and make the students fall in love with the subject and inspire them to follow him/her. Till that happens, many more farce presentations and conferences will continue to happen and I too will be lingering around, hoping to catch glimpse of one or two people talking in a way that would make English Language Teachers proud.