Some things don't change !

And here I was again in the school dropping my boy (now all of 11 years) and his friend for a competitive exam. As I always did for most exams that he appeared. 

The routine is the same as ever and the motions that we go thru are the same too. Make sure that he gets ready. And while he and his mother fuss over the clothes, the uniform, the water bottle and the last minute information that he can grab or remember, I ensure that the exam pass, the pens, the pencils, erasers and the pads are properly tucked in the bag. After the customary wishing of luck, we are on the way to the centre. I give him the instructions of doing well, keeping calm, not rushing thru the questions etc. while he is half listening and half chatting with his friend. 'Baba, I know, you don't worry' he smiles when I stop my oft-repeated monologue. I acknowledge him with a nod knowing that my little boy has now grown up. Noticing my silence, he says 'You will pick me up right'. I feel better and say cheerfully 'Yes, I will wait at the right hand side of the gate near the flagpole.' 'Inside the gate that is' I add. 'Okay baba' he signs off and gets back to the banter with his friend.

Sometimes these are moments that you then reflect upon. Times change but some things don't. Baba and me used to have this conversation when I used to sit behind him on the chocolate brown chetak scooter. The sidecar used to have one of my friends in tow, both being transported to the centre of the same competitive exam. And while grinding thru the gears and expertly navigating the lanes, he used to pass on instructions on how to approach the paper, what to attempt first and how to mark everything if the time ran short. While enjoying the wind in my face and chuckling with my friend I used to acknowledge him. And then, invariably there was a silence when he stopped speaking and just drove on. I would notice that something was amiss and would think whether I was being dismissive. Despite being able to go on my own to the centre, baba had volunteered to drop me on the hot Sunday afternoon. Feeling guilty, I would then say 'Baba, would you pick me up too once the exam is done?' To which he would cheerfully respond 'Yes, I will wait near the gate at the right hand corner near the mango tree. Don't step out of the gate'. 'Yes absolutely baba' I would say. As the centre would arrive and we would hop off from the scooter and start to move towards the gate I would pause and turn back to see my baba looking back at me. I would flash a huge smile and wave him and then would go inside. He then would mesh the gears, turn the scooter back and be on his way. I would always go inside, smug with the thought that I was blessed to have him around.

As we too reached our destination, the kids piled out of the car. The door was shut and both clambered up the steps towards the huge entrance. And as I watched them about to enter the gates, my boy turned and looked back at me. He wore the biggest smile and cheerfully waved back at me. I smiled back at him, put my vehicle in reverse and started my way back. Am not sure what he felt when he went inside those gates, but I certainly felt blessed again. Yeah, times do change, but some things don't !!