THE SLAM BOOK

One of the rituals every student goes through when leaving school or college, is buying a slam book. Painful yes. But its one of those things that cannot be left to the last minute.
I did not know the importance of slam book in the seventh standard, so i didn't buy one. To this day, i regret it. Not getting my Rotary friends on a slam book was pretty foolish. But i was careful not to repeat the mistake for tenth standard. I got the best book available.
The first person to write was Vijendra. (Coincidentally, he was the first to write on my slam book for 12th too). Tenth was one of the best years of my life. I had to change sections. From a class filled with geeks, i was thrown into a room full of rag tag ruffians. I could not beat them, though the class teacher had asked the class to emulate me! So, i joined them. Each one's antics was recorded in the slam book. None of them were from the first bench. The little ones were best left out. The orange color slam book serves as a reminder of friends gained, and some who were sadly lost. No girl ever wrote on my slam book. I was too shy to approach them, even the one i had a crush on. Looking back at the comments, our parents would be surprised and horrified at our knowledge of sex and female anatomy.
I changed schools. Twelth standard, or PUC as its known, was confusing. Teenage distractions, board exams, tuition; not to mention the pressure of answering parents whether i'm gonna become a cardiologist or computer engineer. All of our fears went into the slam book. For reasons best known to Almighty God, i bought a pink slam book with teddy bears on it. Again, no girl wrote on the slam book. It was a sausage fest. Every guy wished me to become a doctor or engineer, some just hoped i won't forget them.
Forget them i did, 'cause it was time to move on to a Bachelor's Degree in Science at St. Philomena's. At the end of three years, my black slam book became a time capsule. Since the class was composed of five boys and nearly 10 girls, i had no choice but to give the book to them. Besides, i had overcome my shyness. The slam book resembled a mehendi in some pages and a rangoli on the other. Some girls were straightforward, some girls proved to be Shakephere's mum and Wordsworth's grandmum.
Master's was the last time i would be buying a slam book. Some friends were going back to their hometowns, some to their fields and some were going back across the seven seas. It was emotional. It still is, whenever i open my slam book.
Every page brings back memories. Every page oozes love and affection. It takes me back in time, when i did not have to worry about fulfilling others expectations. I was just being myself, unfazed and happy-go- lucky.
Whenever my spirits are down, i just relive the best parts of my life through my slam books. In those pages, time stands still.