Childhood Revisited

HUBLI - 13.DECEMBER.2009
The day we were all waiting for came and went with the blink of an eye - the first ever all-batch reunion of our school. Ever since mails had begun circulating about our school reunion, the suspense and the anxiety had been building up. 

I was anxious that, when I finally did meet my classmates after a gap of 29 years, I may not be able to recognise them. I was even more anxious that it may be awkward in case they recognised me !

Thankfully not much of that happened and excepting for very few, I could name most of my batchmates who attended the alumni meet. One would have be there to experience the myriad feelings that all of us felt.

Twenty-nine years is a long time and yet, they never seemed to have existed when we met. Faces hadn't changed much. Our girths probably were wider and our hair greyer or thinner. The childlike exuberance, though, more that made up for all of it.

I realised then that I had never really outgrown my childhood. What I am today was just an extension of that. Meeting our old teachers humbled us so much. We are mature, successful & humane adults today - a fitting tribute to their dedication. It was sad to find that some of them had passed on and sadder still to come to terms with the fact that the rest were getting on in age too.

I couldn't help wondering why it had taken us friends 29 years to reconnect with each other, inspite of the fact that we have lived in the age of the internet for over 10 years. Cities like Bangalore, Hubli & Mumbai have been home to many of us over the years, yet our paths never crossed. All it took was an invitation to attend the alumni meet and in less that a month, around 30 of us had located and contacted each other.

Well, as they say, all is well that ends well. Now that we have touched base, we intend to stay that way and are eagerly looking forward to our next reunion which will be along with our families.