December 2023
Little butterfly takes wing
You will warm up to this tale told by Ganesh Pai, of the chemistry between his daughter and her teacher, which led to the child’s metamorphosis
It was March 2020. The pandemic had spread, and the lockdown had begun. The world was cooped up within the confines of four walls. My wife got a message from the school that lit up our faces despite all the gloom surrounding us: they would not conduct exams that year and promote all kids to the next academic year. My wife and I were more relieved than our nine-year-old daughter, Vaishnavi, the reason being we would not have to go through the ordeal of seeing her get poor marks in mathematics. Vaishnavi had a troubled equation with maths, and it was evident in the way she solved maths problems (especially word problems, which she hated). Nevertheless, the school wanted the kids to attempt the exams at home.
Maths and madness
On a quiet morning, other than the occasional humming of cuckoos in the nearby trees in the kids’ play area, there was pin-drop silence in our apartment complex. The stage was set for an epic face-off between Vaishnavi and her dreaded mathematics paper. My wife, Reshma, set the timer and handed over the question paper to Vaishnavi, after which she asked me to watch over our daughter and then rushed to the kitchen. So, it was Vaishnavi, mathematics, me, and an unusual silence in our bedroom that day.
As Vaishnavi went through the question paper, her face looked blank, much like the answer paper. After going through it multiple times and looking at the ceiling and her father (who had taken his job as an invigilator rather too seriously) from the corner of her eye, Vaishnavi finally started putting pen to the answer paper. After a few moments, I got up to glance at her answer sheet. I was livid at what I saw: 1+1=11! No father can feel proud looking at this answer, especially if he is a chartered accountant. I saw the other answers she had written, and the situation was no different. I was getting angry at her mistakes. I picked one wrong answer and asked her how she arrived at the solution. My intention was to help her realise her mistake. She had no clue. I repeated my question, this time louder. The child got scared and kept mum. I started increasingly losing my patience and, eventually, was see thing with anger. Vaishnavi was silent and could not bear to see me angry. Irritated by her silence, I hit her on her back (one of those moments I am not proud of myself). Vaishnavi got scared. I repeated the question. (If she knew, she would have answered the first time. But when you are angry, how can you realise such profound realities!) By then, I was hopping mad. Still seeing her clueless, I started beating her again; I was acting like a man possessed and went on
shnavi’s failure at her mathematics exam made her father livid with rage
Metamorphosis 47
Reshma rushed in and, with one look, she knew what had transpired. She immediately hugged Vaishnavi. The child felt as though she was rescued from a monster. I hung my head in shame. I could not bear to see Reshma or Vaishnavi. Reshma immediately gave some water to Vaishnavi and, while consoling her, told me she would handle it from there on. beating her. The child resisted at first. But she stood no chance against this beast. A point came when I felt pain in my hand, but Vaishnavi was not reacting. Tears flowed from those big eyes out of pain and fear, and my hand marks were visible on her fragile body. (Even to date, I cringe when I remember it.) Then, all of a sudden, she started to have difficulty breathing. Unable to talk, she barely managed to say, “Papa, please stop.” Now it was my turn to get scared. I stopped. But I did not know how to handle this. I called Reshma immediately.
Reshma rushed in and, with one look, she knew what had transpired. She immediately hugged Vaishnavi. The child felt as though she was rescued from a monster. I hung my head in shame. I could not bear to see Reshma or Vaishnavi. Reshma immediately gave some water to Vaishnavi and, while consoling her, told me she would handle it from there on. I left the scene completely ashamed of myself. That night passed in repenting for my action. But the damage was done. The next day, Vaishnavi had forgotten the incident and was her loving self. But I knew I had let myself down. (I still wish I could undo this one incident.)
Status quo continues
Vaishnavi entered the fourth standard, but nothing changed. Her woes with mathematics continued, and online classes were not helping both children and parents. I attempted to teach once or twice, but seeing her tepid response, I gave up. And I was once bitten twice shy anyway. Next year, she moved on to the fifth standard. However, the situation remained the same. Not that she would do badly, but her performance was still lacklustre.
When she entered the sixth standard, the kids were back to school. The first few months flew like days. I started noticing that there was a difference in the way she studied, spoke, and walked. There was a sparkle in her eyes, and confidence was visible in her strides. It was time for the first parent-teacher meeting (PTM as it’s called). A few days before that, Vaishnavi would keep telling me, “Papa, you should meet my Chaitra Ma’am.” I found it a little strange. Why is a child so keen that her parents meet her class teacher?
One Saturday morning, we entered the VI-C classroom on the first floor, where two parents were already seated. We all sat in the second row on a wooden bench. After waiting for 15 minutes, our turn came. We greeted Chaitra Ma’am, not knowing what was coming our way. Chaitra Ma’am said, “Sir and Madam, I have nothing to say about your daughter.” We thought, Oh no! I asked, “Madam, is there anything wrong with our daughter?” Chaitra Ma’am replied, “Sir, your daughter is an excellent student. She is my go-to child whenever I am expecting answers to my questions. You should look at the way she forms her sentences and the deadpan confidence with which she answers.” Reshma and I were now clueless. We thought for a moment the teacher was talking about some other student. Then she said, “Sir, only one thing: she sometimes feels sleepy in the first class of the morning. What time does she go to bed?” Now we knew she was talking about our daughter. Reshma cleverly used this opening to vent her frustration and said, “Ma’am, she does not go to bed early. And it’s not easy to wake her up either.” Chaitra Ma’am gently told Vaishnavi to sleep early and report her sleep time in the next PTM. The child happily nodded her head.
Chaitra Ma’am—a channel of love Things became apparent, and we realised the cause of Vaishnavi’s 360-degree transformation. The teacher-student chemistry had clicked. Chaitra Ma’am was instrumental in bringing to the surface the potential that Vaishnavi always had and which we were oblivious to. Chaitra Ma’am had given enough love and attention to Vaishnavi, which had helped her confidence soar sky-high.
Now Vaishnavi was a different kid. She was focussed on achieving academic brilliance. With each test, we could see her climb up the leaderboard, and in the third unit test, she was one of the top three students. And it was no secret that she was eyeing for the academics leader badge. The competition was intense, but Vaishnavi was leaving no stone unturned to grab the coveted badge. She would stay up late,
The right teacher was able to bring out Vaishnavi’s interest in studies, especially maths.
Now Vaishnavi was a different kid. She was focussed on achieving academic brilliance. With each test, we could see her climb up the leaderboard, and in the third unit test, she was one of the top three students. And it was no secret that she was eyeing for the academics leader badge. and we had to plead with her to go to bed. But she would not relent. We were stunned by this transformation.
Finally, the results were out. All her efforts had paid off. Vaishnavi was a joint topper and had earned the academic leader badge. I still remember Vaishnavi wearing the badge on her uniform the next day, smiling ear to ear.
Leader for life
It was time for one more PTM, the last for the sixth standard. This time, both teacher and student were beaming with happiness. I had no words to express myself and was incredibly proud of Vaishnavi’s academic progress. As a courtesy, I asked, “Ma’am, anything we
should do about Vaishnavi?” Before I could even complete my sentence, pat came her reply, “Sir, please do not worry about your daughter. Whatever she does in life, she will be successful.” I was speechless. Chaitra Ma’am’s words had come from the depth of her conviction about her student’s potential. I just said a thank you, which did not do justice to my gratitude towards the teacher.
As I walked down the stairs holding Vaishnavi’s hand, with Chaitra Ma’am’s words still echoing in my ears, I said a silent prayer in my heart: Let every child find its flow.
Let every child find a Chaitra Ma’am. Let every parent allow the child to blossom on its own.
Ganesh Pai is a senior finance professional, currently working in a deep tech start-up. Ganesh believes in leading a holistic life - aspiring for mate rialistic abundance while being spiritually rooted.
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