Kiran Khalid’s Memories
Kiran Khalid who is now a first year student at the Agha Khan Medical University writes about her memories at Laurelbank School System.
Down Memory Lane…
Life goes on in periods. People go away, new faces enter, places change, yet life moves on. I was once a student at LPS. Now I walk its corridors as a visitor, watching the same enthusiasm, aspiration and liveliness in the eyes of the students that were once in me. I watch my teachers teaching the same concepts, but the faces in the classes have changed. And a voice inside me grows louder and stronger, saying, “I was here once!”
Once LPS used to be the only focal point of my life. It seemed as if everything revolved around school; the study routine, fun hang-outs, television, co-curricular activities and everything else! Now it all seems so far away. Yet I can remember it all so vividly. It took me a lot of effort, balancing and failures to get to whatever little success I have today. And it was at my school that I learnt to handle all these things; “I grew up there”. Yes, it is literally true in my case as I spent 13 years at LPS. It was, is and will always remain in my fondest memories. It taught me a lot. I’m told (since I was too young to remember) how we used to start crying about leaving homes and moms.
I remember making friends, sharing the dumbest details with them, studying in classes, practising making sentences, solving problems and commenting on each new decision by the administration. We used to have heated arguments as to whether or not the Siraj building was haunted. The “ghatta” ground has now become the current boys branch. The building in the centre has been demolished to provide the assembly area. We used to get so excited about each trivial thing. We used to think of annual prize distributions as mega events and oral tests as judgement days. Each year we used to get so excited about getting new backpacks and books and entering new classes. The 20-minute recesses each day seemed like paradise. The smallest amount of homework seemed like a mountain and the fights with friends made us feel like the world was at its end.
It’s said that when you have something, you take it for granted and that it’s only after you’ve lost it that you realise its worth. It’s true! I only saw what LPS gave me after I’d left it. It nurtured my thirst to excel and I did! And I was taught to take the failures as lessons and the successes humbly. I learnt a lot! And I made friends. I don’t think I can ever put into words how much those 13 years mean to me; the school, the guidance of my teachers and the support of my friends. Names of some teachers deserve mention but I better not. I cannot refrain from mentioning Wajiha, Mehak, Maryam, Amna and Zainab! My friends they were and will always remain.
Well I could go on, but I suppose this has been long enough already! And so, as William Shakespeare aptly puts it : “The rest is silence!”
Kiran Khalid