Just a few days back, I read it in newspapers that the SSC results declared. Generally when at home, mom would tell whose who expecting results for SSC that year. But for last couple of years, since staying out of home, declaration of SSC results just another news in the newspaper.
Picked up the news paper and one news attracted my attention. ‘Maharashtra SSC board results to be declared today’. This news today was just news for me, but it meant whole world to me 10 years back. This very day, ten years back, I was expecting my result. I can clearly remember that day. There was suspense and tension in the air that day. Almost everybody I know had appeared for the exam. It was projected as if the most important day of my life. I am still validating the fact whether it was or not.
That day and the year before that just flashed in front of my eyes that day. What a year! One of the fastest years I would say. When I was in 9 grade itself the mania started. A long lost aunt or cousin would ask “kitvit re tu ata? (Which standard you are in?)” and when I would tell them the answer the next sentence would be…’so ready for 10th next year??’ I so wished so day “was there going to be standard 9.5 if I were not ready for 10th next year?” Soon I came to know, this was just the beginning.
Someone has said, ‘life is an examination’ and it’s kinda true. But the SSC exam is the one which is very very different. At least in my case, and I guess for most of us, was first big exam, but it was bigger and more important for all the people related to me.
This exam has always been very important to the people who didn’t appear for it. For example, parents and all the relatives of the person who was appearing for the exam. When you are in 10th, suddenly everyone related to you, your aunts, uncles, neighbors, friends parents, doodhwala bhaiya, local grocer… everyone suddenly become experts in education. You would start getting advices from all direction, for everything in your life, and not just regarding studies. I think you have it written on your face “I AM IN 10th, OPEN FOR ADVICES”
The most common among the advices are “study early in the morning, its good for you” and this then generally get appended with, ‘there is a study done in Romeria (god knows where this is) that morning is the right time to study” or “its written in our Vedas”. Then there were mothers of the fellow ‘SSCions’ who would not be satisfied by troubling their own wards so they would advice on your study schedule and everything in your life. Someone had told me “you will have to improve your handwriting, (till here it was bearable, but then came the clincher), look how my son writes, learn to write like him, this will make a good impression on the moderator” and loads and loads of other advices.
These advices start raining when the exam date approaches. It starts with “write your roll number correctly on the exam sheet”, “make sure you sit at the right place” and it can go all the way to “go the xxx temple before you go for the exam”. The last few days before exams are just about taking advices from everyone you know. Even your younger sibling gives you advice.
Then these advices are so much of a headache, and you actually start hating those ppl who gave you all these advices. But 10 years down the line, when I look at them, I understand, each one of those people did just wanted me to be successful in that exam and in turn in my life.
I was given countless advices; most of them were quite obvious, some where weird, and some where laughable. But there was one advice which I still remember; it was from my Dad’s Uncle. He had sent me a postcard via snail mail. Amongst all other things, the line I remember was, ‘This is first important exam in your life, don’t be scared or be bogged down by it. There will a lot of exams more important in your life, and God forbid your result is not as per your expectations, don’t be scared or worried, this is not end of the world.’
Don’t you think, this is the very thing we wanted to listen from at least one of our well wishers before going for that SSC exam?
