A New Beginning: Is it worth it?

The day had finally arrived, I felt numb, for the most part, as my parents and I were given a tour of this magical place to be my home for the next 6 years. I had been as excited as I possibly could until a day ago, for I had worked hard to make this place my home- The prestigious Doon School. I was overwhelmed as soon as I walked into the campus. Spread over 75 acres, housing some of the most influential people in India and a fraternity second to none.

And here I was, an introverted 13-year-old kid from a small town, in no way distinguished or special, wondering how in the world could I fit in with these exceptional individuals. Another fact that wasn’t necessarily of much help was the fact that I had never been away from my parents and home for more than a week, and here I was expected to live on my own with people I had never met before, in an environment with absolutely no privacy. After a short speech by the Headmaster, it was time for the parents to leave. As soon as that realisation hit me I started crying and while my parents tried to put up a brave face, their eyes teared up as well.

The first week hit me the hardest, as I had joined a year later and most of my peers were already in groups. Even though they tried to be nice, I wasn’t able to make a good impression. What was also extremely hard was the lack of any electronic devices, as they were prohibited for junior classes, which meant I couldn’t communicate with anyone back home

I did not have much time to get accustomed to all of this as the very next day, the entire school had to depart for a wonderful concept known as midterms, where every batch had to go up to an obscure spot in the hills for a week, do tons of trekking, eat local cuisine and live in a modest resort so that we could be in touch with ourselves, our culture and nature. Sounds fun, right? Well, it would have been for me as well, had my luggage not got lost on the 8-hour journey into the hills, and so there I was stranded on my very 2nd day just having lost almost all the luggage I had brought.

Regardless, it wasn’t the best experience I've ever had and I certainly had second thoughts about my decision throughout the entire first month but, as I reflect back on that time 4-years later, I am glad I persevered. Change by definition is hard and unpredictable and uncomfortable but if there is one thing I learned- it is necessary. Had I not persevered then I would not have gotten the opportunities and the experiences that I have gotten here and I would have not been able to build some wonderful friendships and relationships with my friends and teachers that will last a lifetime. Now, don’t get me wrong change is just as hard as it was then, there are ups and downs every day and often times situations get out of hand but with time I have learnt to deal with them on my own and even if I can’t there are always friends I can rely on who will help me deal with anything that might happen.