GENIUS

As a kid everyone has a bit of everything in them. WE are all at some point good at music, debating, GK, dramatics, drawing, even sports. As a kid I was really gud at playing the congo, I blew away audiences with my speech, won the magi quiz contest, got selected for the lead role in the house play, and also played decent tennis.
It is after we grow up that we give up these dreams. Or rather, it is in the process of growing up, that we begin to realize, we are not as good and that the world had other geniuses too.
In about 7th grade I had joined a personality development class by the name “genius”. It was quite fun actually… word games, JAM sessions, GK sessions, mock press interviews, elocutions, extempore. It was like everything I would have liked to do in school without the stupid courses. But it was not easy getting into these classes.
“Please dad, it’s gonna help me”
“Please dad it won’t cost much”
“Please dad, I will finish my homework before going there everyday”
“Please dad, this other guy from my class goes there too… you want me to come second next time there is a quiz?”
Ah! I was in. And so it began. I was another genius, everyday discussing and interacting with other geniuses of the city, only with time I was bound to leave them behind. I was loud in the JAMS, expressive in extempore. People saw me as an inspired orator, or so I made myself believe. At home my father was amazed at my efficiency. I heard him saying to my mom that at first he tht he might be wasting his money, but this class was worth every penny he was spending.
Every year at the end, the best all round performer at the class was awarded a prize, infact a title “Genius of the year”. I was right on my way to grab that first award of my life. I nailed all the speaking events. Was even invited to give demos to other classes where students were a little week.
Now came the time of written quizzes. The word games were difficult, I always had problem with the spellings. Maths was ok, but everyone else seemed to finish before me. The real setback was GK. There were 20 questions. We had to answer them in 30 mins. Except that in my case time didn’t matter. I thought there was nothing general about the General knowledge. Whats the capital of turkey? .. I Don’t know… What was Mark twain’s third novel?... I don’t know When did the gulf war start?.. I DON’T KNOW!!!
You know that feeling when you actually know blood is rushing up to you brain, turning your face and ears red with embarrassment . Everyone around me was busy writing, scribbling, erasing and rewriting. Me, I was lost in an image where I was falling down like Alice in the wonderland. Such a pity though , IDIDN’T KNOW THE NAME OF IT’S AUTHOR.
“Time up” I heard. Everyone got up themselves and formed al line near our instructor handing over the papers. Just them I saw the sheet of the kid in front of me. Q 19 PURI. That’s all I could read. Without thinking I scribbled the answer down. I wont be out for a duck. As I handed over the paper to our instructor, I could not meet his eyes. I tried to leave as quickly as possible but … “Amit, come here please.” Everyone else had left.
“You got just one question???”.. I guess there was no respect in scoring just a single either.
“Well… is it right?”
He noded… dissapointed
“I don’t know all this stuff… I never read about it….”
I thought he would shout at me, for not completing my home assignments… for not paying attention in GK classes.
But nothing of that sort happened. He just gave me a disappointing stare and left. I wondered about it all the way back home. This was no school I was going to, where if I don’t perform I would fail. Here we all met to enjoy and learn, learning that had nothing to do with exams. We were gonna be as gud as we wanted ourselves to be. May be that disappointment was not because I failed to answer the questions, but because he saw a boy, with probably some potential, and yet throwing it away.
As we grow up, one by one we loose al such dreams. I realized I was not as gud in GK as I tht. Yes I had won Maggi quiz contest when I was in 5th… but tht was a long time ago. I was still gud at dramatics, but maybe some day that bubble will burst too.
I didn’t go to the prize distribution ceremony for the classes, even though I had won several individual awards.
“So when does it start next year…? Let me know so I would get a DD made for your fees”
“ No dad… I don’t think I wanna go next year. I would waste my time, I need to study. Its gonna be boards next year”
Oh well, kids lie.