A Little North Of Normality

MR OLIVER AN ANGLO_INDIAN teacher.was returning to his school late one night on the outskirts of the hill station of Simla.From before Kipling's time, the school had been run on English public school lines and the boys,most of them from wealthy Indian families,wore blazers caps and ties.Life magazine,in a feature on India had once called it the "Eton of The east".Mr.Oliver had been teaching in the school for several years.The Simla Bazaar with its cinemas and restaurants was about three miles from the school and Mr.Oliver a bachelor usually strolled into the town in the evening,returning after dark,when he would take a short cut through the pine forest.When there was a strong wind the pine trees made sad eerie sounds that kept most people to the main road .But for Mr.Oliver was not a nervous or a imaginative man.He carried a torch and its gleam -the batteries were running down-moved fitfully down the narrow forest path.When its flickering light fell on the figure of a boy...

. Everything you eat is limited TO garlic, onion and tomatoes. .You try and reuse gift wrappers, gift boxes, and of course aluminum foil. .You try to eject food particles from between your teeth by pressing your tongue against them and making a peculiar noise like, tshick, tshick, tschick,tschick. .You are standing next to the two largest size suitcases at the Airport. .You arrive one or two hours late to a party - and think its normal. .You peel the stamps off letters that the Postal Service missed to mark up. .You recycle Wedding Gifts. .You name your children in rhythms (example: Sita & Gita, Ram & Shyam.) .All your children have pet names, which sound nowhere close to their real names. .You take Indian snacks anywhere it says "No Food Allowed" .You talk for an hour at the front door when leaving someone's house. .You load up the family car with as many people as possible. .You use plastic to cover anything new in your house whether it's the Re...

"My voice is very loud exclaimed the monitor, Who asked me not to take his name But the students shouted even louder ----------- to decrease their leader's fame. The chalks were finished writing the names and cutting them off the board ---------- But the class was never quiet and shouted even more................... Back in the benches the students sat Far from the monitor's reach, his voice was like a grain of sand amidst the sandy beach. All day long the monitor cried, "Oh shut up naughty boys" But the boys were never quiet and never ceased the noise. "Wait for me and I'll tell sir and he ll give you pain" Quite suddenly the class went quiet and promised never to talk again. But lo oh! god the damage was done and the teacher had got the scent, He looked here and there and Soham and Rahul A solitary confinement. They of course protested much but it was all in vain. Whether they had made a noise the teacher did not want to gain. Soh...

A duck once met a porcupine ; they formed a corporation Which called itself a Porcuduck ( a beastly conjugation ! ). A stork to a turtle said, "Let's put my head upon your torso ; We who are so pretty now, as Stortle would be more so !" The lizard with the parrot's head thought : taking to the chilli After years of eating worms is absolutely silly. A prancing goat - one wonders why - was driven by a need To bequeath its upper portion ta a crawling centipede. The giraffe with grasshopper's limbs reflected : Why should I Go for walks in grassy fields, now that I can fly ? The nice contented cow will doubtless get a frightful shock On finding that its lower lombs belong to a fighting cock. It's obvious the Whalephant is not a happy notion : The head goes for the jungle, while the tail turns to the ocean, The lion's lack of horns distressed him greatly, so He teamed up with a dear - now watch his antlers grow ! Translated by Satyajit Ray. The Bengali version i...

A small cloud of smoke surrounded me last day in the bus.I got choked and finally was relieved after several bouts of severe coughing. I realized it was just that a man sitting beside me had excreted his cigarette's unabsorbed waste products.I was quite amazed to find people smoking with so much frolic and thinking it to be a symbol of charisma .They seem absolutely oblivious about it's ill effects .Though practically all efforts to stop smoking has been in vain new efforts are made every single day.The main problem is that people who smoke not only harm or practically murder their lungs also have a great hand in stabbing or injuring others lungs by passive smoking.The banning of cigarettes in Bollywwood Industry has been put forward by the government so that nobody imitates or tries to take the example of film stars.But modern day youth believes in setting examples rather than following pre-existing ones.Cancers can be kept at bay, Asthma literally wiped out,hea...