U ARE INSANE!!
Isn't weird for me to hear from everyone..Living in my own world..
Study..Learn..Teach..Play..Help..I just do what I feel like..
One day I was just walking down to my office (I prefer to walk to office..some 45 mins walk, I take it as a chance to move my body/Exercise)..Tiring..one will say, but I like it thoroughly..Ya, that day, as usual I was walking on the pavement..saw a few kids running around..I walked on..I just thought I could ask them which class they were studying in..and I did catch hold of one kid to ask "Tum kausi class mein padhte ho ? ( In which class are you studying?)"..The boy promptly replied "Hum nahi padhte vadhte.( We don't study )"..Disappointed was I. Don't they want to study or they are among the victims of poverty? I just questioned further if they want to study. They said they would like to, given a chance..
I dint need any trigger to say anything else..I decided that I will teach them..I told them I will get back to them in the evening and so did I..While my walk back from office, I found the kids right where I asked them to be..In the morning there were 4 kids but now only 2 turned up..anyhow, I was happy that at least the 2 kids want to study. I took them to the nearby market - popularly known as Sector-17 Market. Got them one notebook, pencil, eraser and sharpener each. I stay in a rented flat and thought thats an ideal place to start their studies..
I took them home and tried to explain them why they should know "How to read and write?" Then I wrote a few Hindi and English alphabets. It was not difficult for me to handle them as they knew the meaning of every Hindi word I said..unlike a Nursery kid :).. It was over 1 hour and I asked them to go back home and that we shall continue the next day. They were more than excited to learn and happy with the freebies I gave to them.
They must have taken the stuff home and showed them to their parents..Next what happened, was neither shocking nor so easy comprehend..At around 10:30pm, outside my flat was the poor kids' parents... They were banging and they were shouting..I could not understant..why? When I opened the door, a torn notebook flung onto my face. The parents were apprehensive about the kids and thought that I was actually trying to fool the kids to carry them somewhere..
I tried to explain that I was not fraud and that I reside there and that I work in a big company as an engineer and that I like to teach and that I am genuine and that I did understand that the kids were away from home for a while and that they have all the reasons to get angry..They were not ready to calm down. They flew the notebooks over my face and warned me not to get after their kids..
That night, I could not rest in peace..entire night I was thinking what I could do? Mebbe I could give them money, but there was no guarantee that the money would have been used for the kids education. Usually, the men use the money for their pleasure drinks at night at least for all I have read in the newspaper about such cases..Alas, I realised I can't get away with doing just what I want..even if it is for good...'coz I am in a society where changes are not so easily accepted and it is hard to make people understand the meaning of 'Literacy'.
I do belive there would come one day when India can proudly call itself a Literate Democracy..