Scaling new heights

All of us like to think that we have achieved something noteworthy in life. If you are still young enough and have a long way to go, then you may hope that, one day, in the future, you will do something that will stay etched in your memory forever. Not just in your memory, dear Reader, but in the remembrances of some of the people who love you and care for you. After all, love, too, is nostalgic and therapeutic, and, when in the midst of company that comforts you, it is almost always a good thing to reminisce.

All of us treasure our memories, though sometimes we may feel that to blot out certain incidents that happened in the past may be the best thing, moving forward. But some things remain embedded, there all the time, needing just a trigger—a word, a smile, a gesture, a song, an object, a recollection—to bring all those old, familiar, feelings back. I am quite sure that all of us store away, in our conscious and sub-conscious memories, the things that we love to dwell on, in solitude.

Nothing spectacularly memorable happened in the early days of my life. If “love” is an achievement, yes, I had my share of it. Personal landmarks, also, come along not too often. Perhaps my first significant achievement was when, in 1975, I was selected to represent Madras University, in Hockey. I had worked hard to get there and that paid off. I told my PD—Physical Director—that if I got to don the University Blue, I would make him even prouder, when I came out on top for my Master’s degree. I achieved that too, by securing a First Class in the MA (English) program of the University of Madras. In 1975, apart from Madurai-Kamaraj University, there was only the University of Madras, which had more than 180 colleges affiliated to it. That year, in 1975, only 24 candidates achieved a First Class in the MA exams, and I was one of them. I therefore, scored a double distinction that year—representing the Varsity in Hockey as well as excelling in my studies.

There was more to come, however. Fresh out of college, I was selected by The New College, in Madras. I served as a Tutor in English for a month; I was promoted to Assistant Professor the very next month. I was then, and am now still, the only Anglo-Indian to be on the faculty of this prestigious college. To cap it all, wonderfully for me, was when I married the girl of my dreams late that year. Who ever said that dreams don’t come true?

Hard work always pays off. As a teacher, it was always my ambition to be well ahead of my students, not just inside the classroom. I prepared thoroughly for every class and, very rarely, did I fumble or falter. My stint at the Central University of Hyderabad made me both humble and proud: thankful to be associated with teachers of great learning, and happy that they were part of the process of finding my mojo. Later in my teaching career, I would invite younger colleagues to join my class if they felt it could benefit them.

Only twice was I deemed “brilliant”—once by an enthusiastic student, and, much later, by an up-and-coming junior colleague. In Oman, there were two American teachers who put the whole Language Centre to the test, literally, as it were. It was a “Q and A” test and I emerged on top, by a significant margin. I’m sure that my “teaching” stock reached new heights after that. It was very appropriate, though, for I was, at the time, the Head of the English Centre.

Retiring to India after almost 9 years in the Gulf, I plunged into my fourth publication, a novel with the title “The Nowhere Man”. I still think it’s my best work, to date, but right now I’m working on another book which, I hope, will do better at the box-office than all the others. I feel confident because I have already been interviewed, on TV, for the same work-in-progress, among other topics of similar interest. The 30-minute interview, by a well-seasoned host, went of wonderfully well, even if I say so myself. I have received messages from both India and abroad—congratulatory, of course—and have ignited a nostalgic spark in some of my viewers. Hopefully, the book will be released, very soon, and then I will be able to tell you more about its success.

Wish me luck, dear Readers.