It was autumn and Diwali was almost around the corner, which obviously meant fall cleaning was at its prime. Naturally, during my organizing endeavors, I came across copious amounts of memorabilia from 2008. I found a picture where I was dressed as an angel for the Nativity scene, as one does, but that was quite normal for me.
You see, convent school was a grand old celebration in itself, in the best way possible. We celebrated every little thing, which was probably the best part of it, since in doing so, we honed in on skills that honestly shaped my overall development not just as a person, but as a woman. It was an all girls school, and they definitely knew what they were doing.
I felt like I was in the show Madeline walking in 2 rows of 12 wearing uniforms, and having a new adventure every single day. It was one of my absolute favorite shows as a kid but that's a topic for another day.
I am aware that this is not for everyone, and you'd never actually be checked for whether you're wearing shorts underneath your dress in real life (except maybe if you're in grooming school), but I follow a relaxed version of lot of things I picked up as a child, in my everyday life. I truly believe it's important to have some level of dignity, poise, and morals, as a high value woman and some of these things definitely shaped me into who I am today.
We had about 3 prayers every day, for different times of the day like in the morning and after lunch. Although I wasn't particularly religious back then, I saw them as a respectful 'thank you' to nature and the Universe for providing us with resources and keeping us healthy. Not just that, we actually had an entire day dedicated to expressing gratitude, and it was very creatively called 'Gratitude Day', but I honestly thought it was incredibly cute.
Grooming and neatness were core practical values I learnt in primary school. If you didn't take a shower, nobody spoke to you! Just kidding, that didn't actually happen but we had a very strict uniform code down to the fabric and the thickness of our headbands, and at the time I didn't realize this but the fabrics that weren't allowed were generally less appropriate for business than what they recommended, for example, Nylon ribbons over satin. Now, satin is absolutely gorgeous, don't get me wrong, but not for uniforms.
Apart from this, we were asked to carry our own 12"x12" serviettes with our lunch boxes, which was essentially just practice for dining etiquette. The hem of our skirts had to be exactly at our knees, not lower or higher, and cycling shorts underneath them were mandatory. we had to have 2 ponytails instead of one, we had to have the right shoes and socks, and our ID cards on us at all times.
It did take slightly longer to braid your hair in two sections than it would take to just throw all of it into a ponytail, but it taught us to do things appropriately, with mindfulness, and to put effort into our appearance.
Once a week, we were taken to the school library, and the books there were my favorite kind- Victorian, vintage and religious themed with autumn-toned solid hard covers. If I were asked to name even one of them, I wouldn't be able to, but I definitely remember what I read. We were given a new random book to read each week, which, we obviously didn't have enough time to finish, and so there was always a longing after I left since we were never allowed to take them home because we were only kids and kids are really not the most responsible people in the world. But just the feeling of being in the that room, surrounded by old books, was surreal.
We had movie days every now and again. If you were taken to the hall and a sister pulled out a metal trolley with a giant box TV on it, boy oh boy was it a lucky day for you. But the best part was that we watched classics like The Sound of Music and Pride and Prejudice and I'm so thankful we did because that is another place where my love for all things old-fashioned began.
Every single morning when we got to school at 7:30, we had an assembly where we had a very simple exercise drill that helped us get warmed up for the day. Once a week, right in the morning, we had a yoga class as well, and honestly, I give it full credit for my flexibility, because extreme stretches certainly aren't a part of my daily routine. No, seriously, look at the picture. Those are some primary school yoga lessons right there.
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We had a once a week dancing class which was mostly basics of Indian classical dancing, but also a wide range of other dance forms. Not only did we get ample physical exercise in different forms every single day, but we also connected with our feminine energy by learning dance forms that mimicked the swirling patterns of nature. And if that wasn't enough physical activity, we also had tennis and basketball classes and I was absolutely terrible at both of them until I developed an interest in sports in 8th grade and made it to the Basketball team. But regardless of my blasphemous exposition of disappointment in the name of tennis, I thoroughly enjoyed the learning process.
We used to sing beautiful hymns, and nostalgia especially hit me like a truck during Christmas time; in the best way! In fact, by 5th standard, we were all pretty decent singers, if you ask me. We used to celebrate EVERYTHING with dancing and music. Every. Single. Thing. Down to the birthdays of our fathers and sisters, national holidays, festivals, you name it. It instilled the value of celebration in me, and if I don't celebrate every little thing now, that feels more strange than doing so. All of us contributed equally to decorating, food, and the performances, making every single time more special than before.
Every year on Children's Day, which is November 14th, we had a tuck shop where we brought food, snacks, and gifts from home. It was a grand fair and all the money donated from it went to the education of underprivileged children. Our school also had free evening classes for them.
We had the infamous wooden wall panels and there were religious statues of Mother Mary, Jesus, and angels everywhere; do I need to say more? I'm so proud and glad to say that I have lived that dark academia life in all its glory. We had a church inside the school! I mean if that doesn't pain the most beautiful Christian-era-Europe picture in your head, I don't know what will. Everything about it would make you go, "They don't make 'em like this anymore!"
I know most of you will think that everyone has these things in their school, and to be honest, that's amazing! I think everyone deserves to have a wholesome education like I had the honor of getting in primary school. This is me just taking a trip down memory lane and being grateful for having had the privilege of getting an education in every single area, and everything I experienced in school as a child.
I hope you enjoyed reading it, in the very least.
Love,
Shicuki
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