G FOR GRADUATE

Things change. Things grow. So do people.

Three years back, I was the person who just couldn't stop complaining about my college, the role it played as an educational institution. Ours was a strictly Money-Only-Policy college. But as the years passed by, they changed their principle to more-and-more-money-only-policy. Students were made to shell out money at all points of time and at every opportunity possible. You want to participate in your own culturals, pay an entry fee. You want to register yourself for on-campus placements, be ready to blow up half a grand (note: non-refundable, even if u don't get placed). You want a farewell, contribute money. You want a Convocation ceremony to be conducted, just pay up. Don't you know the rules by now? Their creativity, when it came to minting money from us, ran at 120hp!


By the end of 1st year, I thought "Well, the only thing that still keeps me sane in this institution dedicated for insanity is the social life I've managed to forge. Probably that is worthy enough to pull through another couple of years".


And thus I entered my 2nd year of college. By now, I was enjoying life at a full blast. I no longer cared for what the institution was upto and how it came up with every possible way of dampening our interests, academic and otherwise. I owe my power of tolerance to all the active members of my social life, whom I choose to call my friends. Now this got me thinking "Hey. It isn't as bad as I thought it to be. Probably I should keep a more open mind and try seeing the silver lining".


Enter final year. Enjoy maadi doesn't even begin to describe that one year of college! With probably the maximum bunks recorded in history,participating in countless inter/intra college culturals and having full attendance there, kicking ass whenever any of the management members tried to add special fx to the already ruined lives of ours, exploring the city to the fullest extent by all modes of transport and at every possible time of the day including the ungodly hours, having and giving completely memorable and unforgettable(even if you are a victim of amnesia) birthdays, with of course, music and food forming an integral part of all these!


By the end of it, it all became clear to me. A college, however bad as an institution it might be, is worth the time we spend there, if not for anything,atleast the social part of it. The rush that one gets in experimenting with life, the unadulterated pleasure in meeting people that it makes us go hug everyone around crazily, learning valuable lessons of crisis-management (with every lecturer dumping us in a ditch with the countless assignments and projects, this skill has become a second-habit to me now) and a lot more.

The Graduates.

I've finally graduated. The sheer pride and happiness that I carry with me right now has managed to push, rather toss aside every thing, every aspect and every person that made me hate college. Well, its worth all the time I spent in this thankless institution. I still haven't, and never will, stop bitching about my college. But when someone other than a fellow hell-mate does the same, I just rise up to the occasion and defend my ex-hell-hole with all due pride and passion.