Yet Another Story Poem by Bashyam Narayanan

Yet Another Story



I was one of the bright students in the school
I was waiting for a proof in this regard

School final examination results came
As they got published in the news paper
The results usually appeared in the local news paper
And in a special evening number

Not everyone could afford to buy the paper
A generous person used to get the paper
Stand in the middle
People around shout a number
And the person with the news paper shout back
To say pass or fail
Four of my street mates went there
Only to find that I only passed the examination
The results got verified next day morning
In the national English news daily
Where also the same were confirmed

And within a week of the publication of results
The marks obtained in the examination
Were sent by registered post to the student
As per the address mentioned in the school
We had no other means to get the marks

We all gathered in the main post office that morning
To receive the secondary school leaving certificates
With the marks obtained in the final examination
As these were sent in the name of the student
Post master asked us to fall in line
And in the alphabetical order of the names
Not a big crowd, but more than fifty of us stood
Daring the warming up sun
My turn came after a wait for twenty minutes

I opened the cover
And hurriedly turned the leaves of the certificate book
To the page where obtained marks found a mention
We gathered to compare the performances and
Yes, I proved to be one the best students of the school,
If not the best,
As I ranked third in the school
My street mates preferred to stay home
As they have not passed the examination

I was walking alone towards home
Not really knowing how to react to this success or otherwise
When I reached home
And shared the news most of my cousins got excited
As none of my elder cousins has scored so much as I did
When they passed out their examinations in the previous yesrs

My dad was taking his lunch
I showed him my marks
He simply said
You are putting me into trouble
I must make you go to the college
I have no clue as to how I am going to manage such expenses
He was, however, happy to part with sum of six rupees
Five rupees for application form
And a rupee for my travel to Tiruchy
A town where St Joseph's college is located
I went there by noon with the certificate containing the marks
Purchased the application form
Filled it myself
Submitted and my marks were verified
And the clerk said
You will be admitted as you got good marks

The admission card reached home by post
In my father's name
After thinking and rethinking my dad
Sent me again to the college with the admission card
Original Secondary School Leaving Certificate
And an attested true copy of the mark sheets
This time with one hundred and one rupees
Hundred rupees the college fees and
One rupee for the travel

But he had to say
See, your further studies
Depend on your obtaining scholarship
As I will be applying for National Merit Scholarship

I was awarded the scholarship
And went on to study six years in the same college
Up to my post-graduation
All through scholarship
Is yet another story

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