After the whole hostel fiasco, I came back to Patiala, India. This time around the schools generally break for the summer vacation. While the other kids were enjoying their vacation I was going to different schools seeking admission. I remember sitting in a chemistry lab writing my admission test. I had grown to enjoy them since I had given so many over the years. It was like a game to me I guess. And I won the game every time.
I joined the same school where I wrote my exam in the chemistry lab. This school would always be special to me. Maybe those were the foundational years or whatever the adults call it. For me, this school was a stepping stone towards knowing my own self.
On my first day of school, I was told we have exams in two weeks. As I joined the school a month late it took some time to befriend my classmates and by the time I completed my pending notes the exams had approached. I did well in all except one, Punjabi. I flunked that subject. That was the first time ever I failed. I was devastated. This wasn’t like me. Not sure if it was my brain or my heart that couldn’t accept failure. But from that point on things changed. I took private lessons just for Punjabi. I learned and prepared for Punjabi day in and day out. Nobody had to tell me anything. I would do everything myself making sure the next time this subject wouldn’t fail me. And my hardworking paid off. I scored the top marks in that subject and I couldn’t have been happier.
This victory was followed by scoring the first prize in a handwriting competition conducted across all classes. My confidence was building up and I began to explore further. I would sign up for various extracurricular activities and the dearest to me amongst them was dancing. The idea of performing on stage in front of a huge crowd was scary yet the experience was exhilarating. The day I performed on stage I opened a new door to understanding myself. My heart was filled with emotions, a mixture of joy and thrill. While I continued to venture towards understanding myself better one thing has remained constant, my love for dance.
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