Shishukunj

My Mind

Mansi Choudhary, Class XI

My mind is a monkey

All day, it orders me to play

People ask me, ‘Hey!

Don’t you have any work for today?’

But my mind is a monkey

Keeps twerking all the way.

My mind is a bee

Keeps buzzing all the time

I keep roaming on all different ways

As if they’re mine.

My mind is a frog

It loves staying in the misty fog

It wants to jump into the lake

And never wants to wake.

My mind is a butterfly

It flutters all day

It can’t manage on a single flower

It wants the whole world to play.

It was a pleasant Sunday morning and I was as excited as could be. I could not wait to break the news to my grandmother. I left the house and drove to my grandmother’s place. I could hardly contain my excitement. I got out of the car and opened the gate. I remembered how we had started it: my grandmother and I used to sit together after school and dream about a city where children did not think of studies as a burden, where everything could be easily understood by everyone. And now….

‘Saira, is that you?’ my grandmother’s soft voice broke the chain of my thoughts. ‘Yes grandma, it’s me!’ I answered and walked towards her. There she was, sitting on the couch, poring over a book.

‘Grandma, do you remember, when I was a kid, we used to sit together and think about new ways of schooling?’

‘Yes dear, they were such beautiful days,’ she said, remembering our talks which used to continue for hours.

‘Grandma, I have made our dream come true,’ I said, in a serious tone.

There was a shocked silence. My grandma sat there, motionless, still unable to believe it.

‘Come on, I can’t wait to show it to you!’ I said.

Grandma got up and we drove to the beach, there we got into a traditional boat and were ferried across the water, to an island. My grandmother was playing with the sea water by the time we reached there. ‘There it is’, I said.

She looked up. Lying ahead was one of the most beautiful islands in the sea. We landed on the shore and got off the boat. We were the first to step on that island after it was completed.

I took my grandma inside. A spectrum of flowers greeted us. Signboards pointed at them, telling what species they were. A little ahead was a roller coaster ride. My grandmother and I got into it and rushed upwards. We stopped at various places and a speaker blared, telling us about the different layers of the atmosphere. My grandmother was extremely excited. We then went into a cave and saw three entrances labeled – History of India, India’s Architecture and Foreign Revolutions. We visited each of the entrances. In there were animations, models and games for making 3D models of important places. Next we visited a building and we were given markers and dusters. Three doors representing three levels opened. We went into the first level and were shown visual representation of math formulae. After we saw it, a portal opened and we entered into a room full of white boards. We solved sums on them. Still my grandmother did not speak. I took her to the building where we saw chemical experiments, a garden where we learnt about plants and experienced how scientists constructed theories. There were rooms full of art supplies and instruments.

When we had completed the tour, my grandma finally spoke, with tears in her eyes.

“It was the most beautiful day of my life, dear. I hope it isn’t a dream!”

After years of hard work in silence, these words were the best reward I could get.

A Day Out in the Forest

Selvi Kataria, Class XI E

One fine day

On my bed I lay

Gazing at the deep blue sky

Thinking of the mountains high

Floated across my mind some scenes

About life in the forest’s greens

Oh! Life is so very carefree

In the care of the gigantic tree

Covered in leaves, a tribal kid

To the old farmland, goodbye he bid

I couldn’t’ tell what they said

Maybe to get me some bread

Or ‘You disturbed our nap’

Or ‘Just kill her!’ perhaps

Next were children with untidy hair

Crossing a river with utmost care

Taking careful steps on the strong branch

To reach across to the cattle ranch

Near a pond was a group of ten

Among whom, two resembled fishermen

Forever seemed to extend their wai

Unless a fish got attracted to their bait

No grief of school or office work

The relief showed in their relaxed smirk

A voice called out ‘Stop daydreaming, sweetheart!’

It was my mom and I woke up with a start.

Childhood – The Best Time

Himanshu Agrawal, Class XI

Don’t you remember those days when all of us were the most stress-free persons on this planet? All of us wished that we never become grownups. We’ll not have to worry about jobs, family, etc.

In my opinion, childhood is the best phase of a person’s life. It’s the time when we believe ourselves to be the happiest and luckiest. I still remember those games in which we transformed ourselves into trains, running through the streets; breaking the window of our neighbours while playing cricket; losing track of time while playing football… We used to spend our time playing, eating, running, shouting. It was the time when we had no worries about starting a multi-national or applying for a job in one of those.

Unfortunately, in today’s world, this ‘children’s best time’ is missing. We no more hear the shouts of children in the open fields or parks. Most of them are in their homes alone with gadgets or at tuitions.

I would just say that this more wonderful phase of our life should be enjoyed to its fullest or else we will regret!

My Pet

Naqiya Barnagarwala, Class VII B

I remember the day I got my pet

From then I was never scared to sleep in my bed.

Now that I’ve even given a name to him,

It’s impossible to imagine life without him.

I love to watch him with coffee and tea,

Living with him has become my daily routine.

He loves to walk in the sun’s rays

With him I love to play.

Without him I cannot imagine a day.

With him joy I get,

I just love my pet!

Sisterhood

Anushka Sharma, Class VII B

It’s a wonderful thing you must know,

The best part of life you can’t show.

You’re the luckiest person on earth if you have a sister for a kin,

She’ll stop you from performing any kind of sin.

You’ll not understand this bond quite well,

It’s just like a mysterious shell.

Your sister grows up to become your best friend,

Even though you think it’s not a popular trend.

She will be silly and shall at times irritate you,

Yet, you’ll be sure that she will come to help you, out of the blue.

This love is great,

You’ll just have to treat her like a mate.

Cloud Talk

Ayush Baweja, Class IX G

The thunder shakes me to the bone

Below me sits a man alone,

In no hurry, the man is,

No thoughts of others, in the joy of his.

Cars fleet past,

Like ships of mast,

Waiting for when the rain,

Will stop at last.

I hear birds chirping,

Hidden in disguise,

I feel the smell of the earth,

Slowly rise.

In the sounds,

Voices drown

Never to be heard,

Never to be found.

Wispy air surrounds me

Rain falls soft on the trees

The sun glistens through the dew.

Seven colors through the sky,

The thunder, no longer does it cry,

Quietly, the winds begin to die,

And slowly the Earth starts to dry.

Futuristic Science

Inter House Board Decoration

The Trip

Pranavi Agrawal, Class X C

‘I’ve never ever felt this kind of fury before,’ Professor Humphrey said to his pupils. He was an excellent teacher and all his pupils did really well in exams and scored really nice marks too! But none of them was street smart. So, Professor Humphrey had secretly designed some practical problems for the students to check if they were actually learning and whether they could apply what they were learning.

Part of the test was a field trip to the Forbidden Forest. Everyone had been really excited to go since no one had been to that forest in 101 years and it was believed to be full of mysterious creatures. So, all the students of Professor Humphrey went into the forest and experienced what they would never forget.

‘Shh Amir, don’t go near it’ Meera cried in fear. But Amir didn’t listen and approached the twenty dogs with just a stick in his hand. His palms were sweating. What about the last lesson when they had been taught that these dogs can smell fear? Didn’t Amir claim to be the smartest in his batch? But of course, that lesson was forgotten. No one remembers lessons on a field trip, do they?

Elsewhere in the forest, Stuti was similarly stuck. ‘I want to get out of this dreadful place!’ she said aloud.

‘Then what are you waiting for?’ Saheb shouted in frustration. He had been trying to convince her to move for about ten minutes now. With each second the danger was increasing. She couldn’t move an inch. She, the topper of the incantation class, didn’t know what to do.

Each student in Professor Humphrey’s class had a painful experience like this. After a long pause Professor Humphrey started again, ‘Well. You have been studying all kinds of subjects but don’t know how to apply what you are learning.

Willing is not enough

We must do!

Knowing is not enough

We must apply!

Time Machine

Soumya Tiwari, Class IX B

Sushil and Aditya were enjoying a leisurely walk in the park in the evening. Suddenly, a man came up to them and introduced himself. He was a scientist named Prasang. He told them that he wanted to speak to them privately.

Sushil and Aditya went with the scientist. He told them that he had built a time machine and had checked it completely. He wanted two sturdy companions to accompany him to visit the future.

Sushil and Aditya were excited. The scientist continued, “Would you both like to go with me?”

“Yes, sure!” replied Aditya.

So, the scientist took them to his lab. There in the centre was a boat-like structure covered with a glass sphere. They sat in that ship and the scientist moved the controls. They were on their way to the future!

Soon, the machine stopped moving. The boys looked around and saw, to their surprise, a whole new world! The humans had advanced technology and it seemed most of the technology was devoted to reducing pollution and protecting natural resources. Sushil and Aditya were surprised.

Then, the scientist said, “Dear kids, if you really want to see a happy future, you must start working to protect nature now. Why should we betray the one (nature) who never betrayed us?”