My teacher, my friend

It was in the morning when Mrs Mukherjee met with a minor accident, which caused her right foot to swell. Since her husband was away at work, and sons at school, she resorted to Moov. She was rubbing the ointment vigorously on her red and swollen foot when her neighbour, a nurse, found her. She recognised the signs and called up Mr Mukherjee and together they dragged her to a hospital. X-ray reports detected a hairline crack. Soon, she had her leg plastered up till her calves.

In the evening when Ela and I came for our tuition, the whole story was narrated to us. Both Ela and I looked at each other and we knew what we had to do. We picked up sketch pens and wrote cheerful notes and drew on her plaster. Mrs Mukherjee, still in a good mood, laughed while saying that she felt like a school student all over again. Even with that nasty swelling she dragged herself around and helped us with our mathematics. Such is my teacher, more a friend than a “teacher”. A lady who always listens to our tales and never shies from telling hers — she is our beloved Mrs Maitree Mukherjee. My favourite teacher!

Arundhati Bakshi,
Sacred Heart Convent School, Jamshedpur

I salute you

Even after so many years, I still remember my nursery teacher. She was the first to teach me how to hold a pencil properly and subsequently, feel the joy of writing. Initially, I was not comfortable in the “restricted” atmosphere of the school. I would cry inconsolably and she would come and try to make me feel at home with her words. I do not remember any trace of impatience or annoyance on her face, ever. It was because of her that I gradually got aligned to the world outside my secure home.

The content of teaching is not always important. What is important is the amount of motivation that a teacher is able to initiate in his or her student — to take her further in her life with proper direction and attitude. The mind of a child is not an empty vessel to be filled, but a fire to be ignited. On this special day, I salute all my teachers who have always helped me to discover myself.

Tanima Chatterjee,
DAV Jawahar Vidya Mandir, Shyamali, Ranchi

I eagerly wait

Oh! I eagerly wait…
For Teachers’ Day...
Fourteen years at school,
Is a token of their love,
For I was taught values of life
Dedication, love, affection,
Even these words are inadequate,
For they taught me with such care,
Which I can never forget.
It is not just history, civics, geography,
Which they taught,
They taught me much more,
Morality, discipline and manners,
Were taught to me in such a way,
I shall remember throughout my life,
I wish these periods,
To come again and again,
For great lessons did I learn,
The day arrives finally,
And I have my arms,
Laden with flowers,
I wish to explain, dear teachers,
Why I eagerly waited!

Ayona Ghosh, Class XII (A),
Delhi Public School, Dhanbad

He changed my life

It has been six years since I have joined my present school. When I joined, I found it difficult to make friends and would often quarrel with my classmates. All the loneliness left me angry and bitter. I also started drifting away from studies and was pretty miserable. Till, there was a new teacher in the school.

From the first class itself, I was impressed. One day he picked me in class to answer a question. My classmates started laughing when I could not answer. While he asked me to follow him after class I did with a scowl.

But when he gently asked me what was troubling me, I simply poured out my heart. He listened calmly, and then explained that my problem was that I was too busy picking on the negative aspects of my classmates. “Show them their strengths,” he said. Sure enough, everything changed once I started following his advice. When he left, he left behind a valuable advice: “Never try to change the world before you change yourself.”

Gaurav Sanket,
Class IX, Delhi Public School, Dhanbad

What can I call you?

What should I call you?
For being there when we call,
Lending a helping hand when we fall,
For your love, and blessings for all.
Fatherly protection, motherly gaze,
What should I call you for the light?
With which you kindled our spirits,
Guided us to what is wrong and right,
What should I call you for all your care?
An earthly being or godly image,
A parent now, guiding spirit for future,
What else, but dear teacher.

Gautam Kumar, Class X,
Delhi Public School, Dhanbad

Guiding lights

Guiding light by these people we are shown,
To pranks and practical jokes, they are prone.
Under their guidance tender minds grow,
Into engineers, lawyers and doctors,
If society is a tree, they are the stem,
Will computers replace them?
Only when money grows on trees!
In this world teachers play an important role,
As they help wandering minds reach their goal.

Kumar Aanjaneya,Class IX,
Delhi Public School, Dhanbad

Thanks

They transform our immature souls,
Into responsible citizens for future,
Thus they have a major role,
In securing a nation’s future.
They impart us knowledge,
And nurture young talents,
Polish them like gems.
Be it a scientist, doctor or engineer,
All owe their success to their teachers.

Aviral Utkarsh, Class XI,
Delhi Public School, Dhanbad

I remember

I remember your words: silence please!
Or come and kneel down on your knees.
The way you made us stop chewing gums,
And helped us solve those weird sums.
The way we flunked in every class test,
Although you wished— children all the best!
I remember your long and lovely hair,
Your saris — red, pink, blue and green
With matching earrings clearly seen.
Your eyes, which seemed to speak what’s true,
Getting upset with us wasn’t like you.
I remember we dozed off in your class,
but you woke every one up from their mass,
We munched sandwiches, while you taught,
Thinking what you would do— If we were caught!
While whistling songs, we would bang desks,
I remember and I tell you —
And write these lines, so that you know you are that star, which still shines.
On this special day you are not quite here
But in our hearts, you still seem near.

My teacher, I remember you every single day and wherever you are — a very happy Teachers’ Day!

Kritika Pandey, Class X, Delhi Public School, Ranchi