March, the month of exams- Down Memory Lane

The year, 2015 has 'march'ed into its third month. It is that time of the year again when the children go crazy memorizing the 'prescribed' chapters of each subject, slated to come in the final examination; while the parents go a level up in ensuring that they dedicate all the time in the world to their children so that they do not venture into a different territory of their own. The CBSE Class X and XII board exams have begun and I couldn't stop going down the memory lane of how those years were for me as a student. My younger brother is appearing for class X while my cousin brother is appearing for class XII examinations. If you think, I played the 'counselor' sister or plan to play that role in helping them surf through the tide of board examination, then, let me tell you, I have no such plans. 

The idea behind this post is to take you all down the lanes of the classrooms, and examination. We all have several memories etched in our hearts with respect to examinations. More so, when it comes to board exams. Memories of sleepless nights, the fear of appearing for board exams for the very first time, finishing the syllabus on time, practicing at least a set of 10 sample papers from U-Like or Together were a daily routine for many of us. But attached with those fear and anxiety were several of our aspirations and the support of our parents and teachers, who made us sail through the tough tide of examinations. 


Like any other student, I too have had many memories with respect to examinations. Some good, some not so good. I remember waiting eagerly since Class V till Class VIII for a letter that arrived in the mailbox with my name and addressed printed on it. The letter would be sent every year, before the final examinations. It came from NIRULAS, then the most happening place to have some mouth watering ice creams, delicious pizzas and shakes — until the likes of McDonalds, Dominos and Pizza Hut took the shine off it. Nirulas had a ritual of awarding the meritorious students. Students who secured above 90% marks in their final examinations were given a free ice cream. When I say free ice cream, it was not merely a cone and two scoops over it but their all time favorites- Banana Split, Chocolate Fudge, etc. I was lucky to have it till Class VIII every year until my grades dropped to 80s from Class IX and the letters too stopped, much to my disappointment. :-(

With the exam time also came the rigorous buying of new pen sets: one blue and one black, new pencils, sharpeners, scale, eraser and what not. Everything new. The excitement of packing the new geometry box was always something to look forward to, if not anything else. :-D The only sadness that I can associate with examination is probably the limited number of hours in front of TV, or outdoor activities; and, who can forget the festival of colors, always falling either before Maths or Science exam. The eagerness to step out of the house to play with the colors and have a gala time was always missed unless there was plenty of time between the festival and next exam. :-D 

Two instances which I recall very succinctly with respect to my board examinations are- one, the morning of my Political Science exam. This subject was something I detested to the core and the fear of failing in that exam was such that I ended up crying right before entering the exam venue. Though my teachers were kind enough to talk me out of it and cheer me up, I was too numb to even think about how the exam would go. The second incident I can recall is that of the night before my Sanskrit board exam in Class XII. It was India vs Pakistan world cup encounter. I was fully prepared to watch the match at night despite the fact that I had an exam the next day and that my mother is a Sanskrit teacher, who was eyeing me with great attention. Yes, I did watch the entire match :-)

Do you guys remember any such incidents from your exam time? Leave your comments below. Would love to read them :-)

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