Chapter 1
The last bench of my classroom has always been both a magnet and mystery for me. As my elder sister was always a brilliant student, so,i too was forced to be one.Such a strange expectation, isn`t it??? This is how the last bench of my school became worthy of no more than a passing glance and slowly and steadily i turned out conditioned and labeled a "front bencher"it`s an honour to be amongst the so called "cream" of the classroom , but what about the statement which economics is shrieking at us since the beginning of the time, "There is no free lunch in this world..."(i wonder about the dinner and breakfast)No doubt, there are lots of great (but silly) things expected of a front bencher. No need to mention them , they are so obvious( roll eyes). But the thing that is designed to kill is the direct eye contact with the teacher. Gosh!! But still being that irritating "front bencher " is an honour of sorts, So, as it turned out i was amongst the top rankers since i worked hard (so modest ,na?) and i hopped my way into Delhi University.
Chapter2
Now, came the first day of my college. A wider spectrum of knowledge , a new feeling,!! Automatically i occupied the first bench (sick of my habit) and yet again fulfilling the horrendous task of maintaining eye contact ( by now i had enough experience to do so).So in one of my rebellious days, i entered Room no. 56 for the first time, Ma`m was not exactly visible and the distance from the board was too huge to be ignored. Believe it or not!! I was at the last bench (mind it1) not even at last...absolutely the last!
Too my surprise it was an exciting place, you have to do absolutely nothing!! Just inhale and exhale...think about whatever you want to, fantasize as much as you can, the perfect place for planning pranks on an unsuspecting friend, writing your best poetry and prose or fulfilling your cherished dreams of mastering the drawing of a perfect Mickey mouse....How free is this place! The teacher will never come to you even if she suspects you and strides over to your end, the magical hub will itself give you a number of creative ideas to stop her advance. I can bet my life you will start writing A B C D or other gibberish on the notebook with such confidence , sincerity and concentration that she will think you are bust in the utterly bizarre and incomprehensible work given by her and thus there will be a happy ending of a fifty five minute lecture in which the minority consults the teacher and their books while majority consults their watches. To sum up ,all i can say is that there are two heavens on this generally mundane earth. One is our mother`s lap and other is the LAST BENCH.......
P.S:- With all the consideration and due respect, it is really tough to imagine the situation of the teacher. Anyone care to elaborate??????
i penned down this article in 2009..thanks Akshita for editing this in such a fine manner
