The chirpy face of the ruddy-cheeked, pre-school tot belies those of his parents.
While he grins and lightly pulls the pig-tails of his elder sister who screams and runs after him for a mock fight, his parents, who would otherwise have smiled at this engaging picture of family life, look the very pictures of worry.
They are not alone in their anxiety.
Several other parents across the country are losing sleep over the fact that highly sought-after schools do not have much to offer in the name of admissions for pre-primary.
With today being the day when quite a few schools put up their glossy prospectuses up for grabs(which don't come cheap by the way) as also their admission forms, parents are tripping over one another to get their hands on these, their teeth clenched in determination.
The last few days of teaching their wards various colours of the rainbow, names of fruits and vegetables, counting upto 100, the months of the year, and reciting letters of the alphabet in an endearing manner - look as if they might not pay off at all.
Infact the situation is so grim that some reputed schools have decided not to offer any seats in the coming academic year.
Leaving yet more parents high and dry.
Prepared to even pay through their noses for securing their wards' admission into one of the snooty / 'with-it' / elite schools, these parents are at a loss what with the Department of Education (DOE) doing nothing to allay their fears and misgivings.
Besides prepping themselves for the informal interview, bracing themselves for the grilling they could be subjected to, countering questions on anything from their religious levels to status in society to the moolah they rake in every month. Phew!
And if things don't go as planned, that done-to-death, heart-tugging scene in which a teary-eyed child refuses to let-go of his mother's finger as she leaves him at his first day of school, she walking back to the supportive, reassuring-shouldered husband in the car – could very well be reversed.
With the tot gleefully going back home in the gleaming pair of wheels, and the parents comforting each other through their tears.
Not all role reversals are happy. Or even welcome, for that matter.
1 comment:
I sure am glad that I did not make my parents go thru all this. Its easier getting a job than to get admissions. I know of this couple who moved out of their house and took rented house near the school they wanted their kid to go, cause you get extra points if you live in the same area!
Do they still allow smoking at the rooftop at Urban Pind? Even the lounge at the 2nd floor is good. Yeah I know lot of places with ladies night, but i guess no one else offers 2 hours of free booze ..with no cunning little * at the top.
There was a time, many moons ago when American Diner at IHC used to have seating outside. You could just booze and puff your way to glory under sky...
P.S- Have you got used to boozing without the cigy in your hand. It is such a pain to step out everytime one has to smoke.
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