My Sharing 'Speech'

Respected Principal Dr. Sr. Jacinta Quadras, vice principals, Deans, Head of the department Dr. Felbin. C. Kennedy, dear teachers and my dear friends, a very good morning. Well, that vice principals and deans part came out of habit. I spent three years listening to that in the OATs.

I won’t say, “I’m privileged for being chosen to share my three years in Stella to you all.” Because I was not chosen. I went “Patcy, Patcy! I, please, please, please”, behind my class rep.

My association with Stella Maris started with my mum and my aunts. They all went to fmm institutions to school. So Stella has always been ‘my college’ as in “I-built-this-here-and-planted-that-there-‘cause-its-my-college” kind of ‘my college’. And like most of you my association with the Maths department started with the interview.

I still remember that day. Jeseena Mrs. Dhoni Fernandez was sitting before me and Margaret Soon To Be Married Mary, moving in and out of the room. I was still not sure I’ll be able to cope with college level Maths and I had no idea what I’ll be asked to do in the interview. I had not prepared for the “D-day” as such, so I was very anxious and went on like, “Will they ask formulas, ma? Come let’s go home. What if they want me to do a sum in algebra? Ma please, let’s go home. What if they ask questions from analytical geometry? Ma please, I’ll be a good girl, I’ll do all the chores, I won’t complain take me home…boohoo…” One more minute and I would’ve broken into a major bawling and my mum too for… you know what. That’s when Tamil Selvi ma’am called me. Seeing my marks, she asked whether I’m sure I was ready to do the course. I don’t remember what I exactly replied but I vaguely know that it was somewhat like this, “Of course, I loooooove Maths! Albert Einstein’s my chittappa and Ramanujam my periyappa you know.” Inside the department – it was in 1-7 before – all I could take in were, there were too many tables and the interviewers were a panel of people facing me and my mum, which was more than enough to unnerve me. I won’t go into the details of the interview as it would be very embarrassing. But the one thing I’ll never forget all my life was the way Felbin ma’am was watching me through her spectacles.

From my childhood I had never had a ‘good’ relationship with any of my Maths teachers. And believe me, from my ‘experience’, I can surely tell which teacher will be a constant in my nightmares. I start sweating and literally shaking in my shoes when Felbin ma’am comes to class, but then along with the rest of my class, it’s only this year that we all found out that she was not all too scary. She’s sweet to talk to outside the class.

Back to the interview, it finally got over with my mum and the teachers having a very formal conversation and I, praying for it to get over with no one asking me anything remotely Math and…I got admission, obviously, I know, duh!

On the first day, I went to find the classroom; it was in 2-3 before, met Meji, introduced ourselves and on the way to the OAT fell down with a very loud ‘thud’ at the staircase in the Main Block. I was blushing deeply, as a teacher helped me up, held me and said, “Are you alright? Be careful on the stairs”, which is something a teacher, would never do in my school. And I guess that’s the moment Stella started teaching me things, helping me grow up and generally springing surprises around every corner.

Then the freshers’ line at the OAT, of course, we had fun getting the calendars, following the seniors around the campus and around the library, getting to know my classmates,, joining NCC, getting caught by the NCC seniors with a, “Okay save it. Felbin ma’am was also in NCC and she knows what’s happening. Just shut up and practice,” thinking of Albus Dumbledore when I saw Sr. Annamma Philip through the gap Agnes ma’am opened to shoo us away, trying to be attentive in Maths classes, which was just impossible, the first ethnic day, freshers’ party, freshers’ talent day, shifting to 1-5 “near the department” as we all were screaming then, the first Aquilae, the day of meeting for the parents and guardians of the first years when my grandmother went to thank Sr. Jaci and blabbered something else which I laugh at even today, the lunches, trying to join the clubs, sight adichifying the then Union! Priyanka Patel! The joy of finding a library that I can actually use, the first year was fun in its own way. Then another fun started – the fun of running around giving invitations and shocking the teachers. I’ll always remember Teresa madam’s reaction when I gave her the invitation, friends inviting me to run away to their homes, I happily showing my cousins Sr. Jaci and telling “my VP has come and none of yours came” and all the other childishness I did at the function when my friends came. The next Monday I came to the college Sr.Jaci said, “Back to classes so soon? Very good!”, and I was like, “Sr.Jaci said very good! Ahhh!!”

Second year was a bit tighter around the throat. All I could remember is, trying to understand Maths, which is shocking, I know; getting lower-than-ever marks and getting frustrated, missing the Aquilae, coming back to college thanks to Sr. Jaci again. I also found there was a subject which I can do well apart from the languages and that was accounts, which also meant, I love Shoba ma’am. All those happy GE Popular Fiction classes I wished that was my major course. And in Astronomy, I loved those tips, I went back again to my interests that semester because of Astronomy. Finally, I decided I’m the worst Maths student to walk this planet and told myself to stop concentrating on Maths and start having fun as a college student should. (Oops! Sorry ma’am!) The real fun in the second year was the elections. Mathu was the candidate and everyone else was anxious for a victory. Now is the time to make a confession. I cannot say I was very good friends with Preetha though I did know that someone with that name and a long hair existed in the additional batch. Maybe because people told me she was arrogant or because she looked cold, I hated her. After the rumors about her during the elections, I hated her as much as I despise Voldemort. I’m really, really sorry Preetha, for judging and nursing a grudge against you even before I could know you well; you turned out to be as sweet as Mathu is. And that is another lesson Stella taught me. Never judge people if you don’t know them well enough. The second year finally got over with all this, running around the campus from the department to the Dean’s office and to the Principal’s office, and making fun of Lithia because, she, the God’s child drinks a lot of “Junior Horlicks”.(Hi Lithia)

The third year was the year I enjoyed the most, starting with the CGC program and ending with this prayer meeting which means we miss classes. Lots happened this year. Vinita ma’am came to the class. Remember the first day? We all were like, “Are you a student, or are you a teacher?”
We got really good teachers like her, Fancy ma’am, Uma ma’am, Felbin ma’am, Nalini ma’am, Mercy ma’am, Cynthia ma’am, Roselette ma’am and Sr. Rosy. We didn’t get those evaluation sheets, by the way. I started participating in events: the fresher’s party from which I ran away, interyears, Aquilae, lots of seminars – both departmental and non departmental, practicing ‘let it woo oo woo”, getting to meet more people- the Union for instance, running around for certificates, I’m obsessed with them I know, I’m sorry I can’t help it, getting to talk to people like Bavitha Reghukumar and Sofia Ashraf who are hyper active enthu pattanis, coming late to the first hour class when Vinita ma’am is there and screaming, “Puny, I saw the cricket players”, telling Mira to mail me all her notes, making Shakti jump, reading books and copying recipes in the library, watching in horror as my class mates use mobile phones right under the teacher’s nose, gossiping about random people like Rivka, who owns the F-block loos, talking about Nrithya singing for A.R.Rahman, Sr. Annama’s flowers, college jackets and what not! Also other minor stuff like GC Seminars, ISTD meetings, Nalini madam’s home works, ‘The’ project, events we participate in so we can bunk class, get attendance, sit idle and get free refreshments – I’m talking about the election duty, telling the department and going to the movie, getting our own pictures in the newspapers, the long awaited excursion, wow, now this is what I call life! If I’m asked whether I enjoyed life so far, I’d say, “Yes I did, to the fullest”. I want to thank Stella Maris and its Maths department for enabling me to say so. To the teachers, my friends, class, people I met here, in short, everyone and everything in The Cloisters, including Ms. Nicola Stella’s residential tabby cat who is love sick for Amlu, I’d like to say a very big thank you for all that you have been and done. Thank you for helping me grow up. Thank you for making me believe in myself and giving me courage and confidence without which I’m sure I would’ve cried here. Thank you 2-1 for all that happened here and reminding me I had to say sorry to so many people – Prabha ma’am coz I always talk in her class, Vinita ma’am coz all of us gave her a real tough time, Sr. Jaci for always standing in front of her office for one thing or the other, Nalini ma’am for I always slept in her class, Preetha for you know what, my class for…I have no idea what and the list goes on. And thank you again Stella Maris for everything, I love you.

I’m not a true Stella Marian if I don’t follow the college tradition, so here goes, “Thank you Sr. Hilda, for the technical support” and chasing us around the campus for all the reasons we found odd. Finally, thank you all for listening to me patiently. I know you had no choice but I had to say that. Protocols you know. And…bye, I’ll miss you all very much.