Four months ago, a friend of mine and I were talking about turning eighteen and all the things we wanted to do between the ages of eighteen and twenty one. We decided that we would have our list on our cupboards and from the day we turn eighteen, we would count how many things we have successfully completed. It took us about half a day to think about all the things that we wanted to do and our lists varied a great deal. For a start, my list was twice the size of hers. When she read my list, she couldn’t believe it was written by me. “No way, you couldn’t have written this and I am sure you dont plan on doing any of the stuff written here.” “Wait and watch” is all I said with a smile. When writing it, the list seemed a little strange to me too but then I realized that this was the age when I could be ‘adventurous.’ Here are some of the things on my list:

·        Become a successful journalist in a newspaper.

·        Bring something to an important minister’s attention – enough to make them do something about it.

·        Earning money and paying for myself.

·        Raising money for good causes

·        Winning awards in at least three things

·        Get interviewed by a famous newspaper/magazine.

·        Get into my dream college

·        Win a lottery/photo contest/auction

·        Be on the TV and radio for deserving things.

·        Go abroad for a vacation.

·        Apologize to everyone I hurt.

·        Float/swim at least once.

·        Get 80% or above in all my subjects in school and college.

·        Forgive all the people that hurt me.

At the end of this semester, my last ever being in school, I am going to see how many things I still have left to complete on this list. I dont know where my friend is at but I have successfully completed at least three and a half of these things so far and I encourage everyone else to make a list and tick off what you have finished. It feels great.

I once read a quote that said "every new beginning comes from another beginning's end." - Seneca. At this stage in life, this is a quote that I have to really think about. I am a person who finds it extremely hard to say "goodbye." Being around or with a person for even a day gets me greatly attached to them and letting go is impossible for a few days. Not all goodbyes are permanent but even if you know that you are going to see the person again, saying goodbye is hard.

I have been at Woodstock for five years now and when I graduate I will be completing six years in a school that has shaped the way I think, behave, talk, etc. I began my journey in Woodstock as a seventh grader who rarely talked, had a boy cut, believed anything anyone said and wanted to leave and go back to where I came from. It was the end of my life in a day school, where I had friends with whom I had grown up with since I was three, where I used to go home every day after school, eat my snack and then play cricket with my friends till late in the evenings, where I used to eat dinner at a dining table where my parents used to sit with me and make sure I would finish my food in less than an hour and ask me about my day.

I began my journey at Woodstock with a teary-eyed "good-bye" to my parents, Chinese food (provided by the school) and feeling lost with, what at that time seemed like a million, unknown, unfamiliar faces. During my first year in Woodstock, I went home any weekend opportunity I got. I wouldn’t miss a chance to spend a weekend with my parents and dogs and home that I could call my own. As the years progressed, I started opening myself up to Woodstock. I became open to making friends with a diversity of people, eating different kinds of food, doing different activities, studying in a place where I knew I wouldn’t see my parents every day. I spent my first teenage birthday in Woodstock with my friends while all my non-Woodstock friends had huge parties to celebrate the worst years of their lives. The years flew by and I grew accustomed to Woodstock and its ways.

Even though I am not the biggest fan of the school, I openly admit that no matter how much I deny it, a part of me is going to miss this school. I was walking up with one of my Junior friends today, who was pretending to not talk to me and just as a joke I reminded her that I was graduating in six months. Not having realized all this time that graduation is getting closer as the days go by, what I said to her suddenly struck me. I was sitting in journalism class editing articles when one of my classmates screamed in shock, "Oh my God, only 12 weeks of school [in session] left before we graduate." Now, thinking about it, I am going to be celebrating another big birthday and this time I wont be dreaming about what my friends will be doing on their big birthday, instead I will be enjoying my last birthday in Woodstock. 

Now a days, I dont look forward to going home every weekend. I actually look forward to spending my weekend with my school friends, talking, watching movies, hanging out and eating. My thoughts towards the school have changed and so has my attitude. Sure enough, I cannot wait to graduate and start a new beginning from an ending this is going to be a hard goodbye.        

I once read a quote that said "every new beginning comes from another beginning's end." - Seneca. At this stage in life, this is a quote that I have to really think about. I am a person who finds it extremely hard to say "goodbye." Being around or with a person for even a day gets me greatly attached to them and letting go is impossible for a few days. Not all goodbyes are permanent but even if you know that you are going to see the person again, saying goodbye is hard.

I have been at Woodstock for five years now and when I graduate I will be completing six years in a school that has shaped the way I think, behave, talk, etc. I began my journey in Woodstock as a seventh grader who rarely talked, had a boy cut, believed anything anyone said and wanted to leave and go back to where I came from. It was the end of my life in a day school, where I had friends with whom I had grown up with since I was three, where I used to go home every day after school, eat my snack and then play cricket with my friends till late in the evenings, where I used to eat dinner at a dining table where my parents used to sit with me and make sure I would finish my food in less than an hour and ask me about my day.

I began my journey at Woodstock with a teary-eyed "good-bye" to my parents, Chinese food (provided by the school) and feeling lost with, what at that time seemed like a million, unknown, unfamiliar faces. During my first year in Woodstock, I went home any weekend opportunity I got. I wouldn’t miss a chance to spend a weekend with my parents and dogs and home that I could call my own. As the years progressed, I started opening myself up to Woodstock. I became open to making friends with a diversity of people, eating different kinds of food, doing different activities, studying in a place where I knew I wouldn’t see my parents every day. I spent my first teenage birthday in Woodstock with my friends while all my non-Woodstock friends had huge parties to celebrate the worst years of their lives. The years flew by and I grew accustomed to Woodstock and its ways.

Even though I am not the biggest fan of the school, I openly admit that no matter how much I deny it, a part of me is going to miss this school. I was walking up with one of my Junior friends today, who was pretending to not talk to me and just as a joke I reminded her that I was graduating in six months. Not having realized all this time that graduation is getting closer as the days go by, what I said to her suddenly struck me. I was sitting in journalism class editing articles when one of my classmates screamed in shock, "Oh my God, only 12 weeks of school [in session] left before we graduate." Now, thinking about it, I am going to be celebrating another big birthday and this time I wont be dreaming about what my friends will be doing on their big birthday, instead I will be enjoying my last birthday in Woodstock. 

Now a days, I dont look forward to going home every weekend. I actually look forward to spending my weekend with my school friends, talking, watching movies, hanging out and eating. My thoughts towards the school have changed and so has my attitude. Sure enough, I cannot wait to graduate and start a new beginning from an ending this is going to be a hard goodbye.        

I once read a quote that said "every new beginning comes from another beginning's end." - Seneca. At this stage in life, this is a quote that I have to really think about. I am a person who finds it extremely hard to say "goodbye." Being around or with a person for even a day gets me greatly attached to them and letting go is impossible for a few days. Not all goodbyes are permanent but even if you know that you are going to see the person again, saying goodbye is hard.

I have been at Woodstock for five years now and when I graduate I will be completing six years in a school that has shaped the way I think, behave, talk, etc. I began my journey in Woodstock as a seventh grader who rarely talked, had a boy cut, believed anything anyone said and wanted to leave and go back to where I came from. It was the end of my life in a day school, where I had friends with whom I had grown up with since I was three, where I used to go home every day after school, eat my snack and then play cricket with my friends till late in the evenings, where I used to eat dinner at a dining table where my parents used to sit with me and make sure I would finish my food in less than an hour and ask me about my day.

I began my journey at Woodstock with a teary-eyed "good-bye" to my parents, Chinese food (provided by the school) and feeling lost with, what at that time seemed like a million, unknown, unfamiliar faces. During my first year in Woodstock, I went home any weekend opportunity I got. I wouldn’t miss a chance to spend a weekend with my parents and dogs and home that I could call my own. As the years progressed, I started opening myself up to Woodstock. I became open to making friends with a diversity of people, eating different kinds of food, doing different activities, studying in a place where I knew I wouldn’t see my parents every day. I spent my first teenage birthday in Woodstock with my friends while all my non-Woodstock friends had huge parties to celebrate the worst years of their lives. The years flew by and I grew accustomed to Woodstock and its ways.

Even though I am not the biggest fan of the school, I openly admit that no matter how much I deny it, a part of me is going to miss this school. I was walking up with one of my Junior friends today, who was pretending to not talk to me and just as a joke I reminded her that I was graduating in six months. Not having realized all this time that graduation is getting closer as the says go by, what I said to her suddenly struck me. I was sitting in journalism class editing articles when one of my classmates screamed in shock, "Oh my God, only 12 weeks of school [in session] left before we graduate." Now, thinking about it, I am going to be celebrating another big birthday and this time I wont be dreaming about what my friends will be doing on their big birthday, instead I will be enjoying my last birthday in Woodstock. 

Now a days, I dont look forward to going home every weekend. I actually look forward to spending my weekend with my school friends, talking, watching movies, hanging out and eating. My thoughts towards the school have changed and so has my attitude. Sure enough, I cannot wait to graduate and start a new beginning from an ending this is going to be a hard goodbye.        

Nothing in life is easy. One look at a distinguished alumni, and you can tell exactly how hard life is. Looking through power points with pictures of their life, it looks easy and straight-forward. Nothing can be achieved without fighting for it and this is exactly what the lives of the distinguished alumni of Woodstock School portray. Earlier this year, Mrs. Margaret Schafer, Class of '56, and Mr. Ashoke Chatterjee, Class of 51, were recognized through a Distinguished Alumni ceremony and today, it was the turn of Mr. Gabriel Campbell, Class of '65, to be recognized for the same. Listening to anecdotes from these people's life makes us realize how lucky we are to be living in an age where communication, transportation, everything is so easy. We also realize how privileged we are to be in a school with such a rich history and we have the responsibility of carrying it forward.

Different people find inspiration from different things in life and some of the things are insignificant or so we think. We can find the most inspiring things in the places that we least expect them to be. Last time, during the distinguished alumni ceremony, I was inspired by the childhood stories of Mr. Chatterjee during his time at Woodstock and the achievements of Mrs. Schafer. Today, undoubtedly, I was inspired again, but this time with the passion, love and determination a person can have for a specific thing or activity. I learnt about what passion and love can drive a person to do. It is his devoutness for mountaineering and nature that had brought him back to the Parker hall stage, not to make a speech as a student or staff but as an alumnus that everyone in the school recognizes for his contributions to the society.

Just today I was thinking, what if after studying hard and getting a degree in Mass Media, I dont want to be a journalist anymore or what if what I want now is not what I want later in life? While listening to Mr. Campbell's speech, I was reassured. If I love journalism and writing enough to make it my career, I will put all my energy into doing so. Hopefully, I will be able to accomplish what I plan to do - make India a better country, remove social injustice by voicing people's opinions and making people realize the "truth" about society and do something about changing it. It's going to be hard, no doubt, but after all I am a Woodstocker, determined and strong. One day, I will be on that stage, for contributing to the world in a positive manner, for making changes according to my beliefs, for making this world a better place and that day I will proudly say, “I owe my achievements to my class, without whom I would probably have never been what I am.”                        

What would you do if there was a fire in one of the rooms of your house? Would you scream wildly and expect the fire to extinguish itself, would you make sure that everyone is safe and walk out of the house without making a fuss and call the fire brigade, would you remain where you are and leave the rest to fate or would you stare at the fire and panic? Different people react to various situations differently. Travelling to different places reveals for people of different places and cultures react to emergencies. Earlier I had written about evacuation drills in Woodstock and how they are conducted. You can read about it here: http://changesinlife.posterous.com/evacuation-drills but as the year has been flying by, I have discovered new ways. I was in Delhi this past weekend for an Art field trip and I had a very interesting experience. Having watched American movies and the show, Friends, I have a slight idea about how emergency exits in a few places in America look. In India, I had seen doors with and emergency exit signage above it and usually the door leads to a garden or an open space where you can move around and away from buildings. The Hotel that we were residing in was called International Inn. It was situated right in front of the airport compound and I had an amazing time watching planes take off and land. On our last night in Delhi, we had returned to the Hotel relatively early and decided to explore the place a little. At the end of the corridor where our rooms were located, which was on the third floor by the way, was a door with the words emergency exit written above it. One of my friends, however, could resist the temptation and unlocked the door to look. He opened the door and burst out laughing. I was standing close by and he called me. I went to the door and without looking was about to step outside it to close the window to my bathroom which had been open all this time. In the nick of time, my friend pulled me back gently and asked me to "watch out." I looked down; astound to find no steps, no platform, nothing. There was nothing there. There was only a 30 feet deep fall. In case of an emergency, if someone who didn’t know about this emergency exit thing ran towards the door and opened it to escape, the disaster would double and the person would surely have no chance of escaping without injuries. Even though I was shocked the see the so called "emergency exit" I burst out laughing at the same. That’s when a thought crossed my mind - different people describe emergencies differently.

"Believe it or not I can actually draw" a quote by Jean Michel Basquiat is one that played through my mind all through the art field trip that I was on this past weekend. Our AP Art class which consists only of grade 12 students, went to Delhi to explore the art and culture of the capital of India. Along with learning about different techniques of art, we also had a lot of fun. I was talking to one of my friends today and she said, "an art field trip sounds really boring." Reflecting back to what she said, I disagree. I had a lot of fun and not counting Activity Week which takes place annually, I cant remember having so much fun with my classmates since eighth grade. Even though my whole grade didnt go on the trip, it was lots of fun. We visited historic sites like the ruins of Hauz Khas and Qutub Minar. We also visited a lot of art galleries, one of them being the National Gallery of Modern Art. Some of the paintings in the gallery were breath taking while for me, others were shocking. Not being a person who is very good at art myself, seeing some of the paintings made me feel better about my artistic skills. There were artists who did the most complicated and beautiful of things and of course I was amazed but at the same time there were paintings that were only two strokes made by a brush. They were simple but had deep meaning to them. During this trip, I saw quite a few people in my art class be leaders. They helped find places by giving directions to the drivers and suggesting places that we could go to. One of my classmate's parents are wedding planners and therefore we got the opportunity to see some of their brilliant work at someone's pre-wedding ceremonies. Along with that we also got to eat an enourmous variety of food, chaat, fruits, sweets, drinks, etc at the party. We shopped and ate at Dilli Haat and DLF Promenade and visited the Delhi Art Gallery in DLF Emporio. One of the paintings, according to the lady in charge of the gallery, was sold for Rs. 16 crores. I wonder why anyone would pay that much for a painting but it surely shows their dedication and passion for it. Last evening, we went to the India Habitat Centre where we watched short films. Some of them made no sense what so ever while others were extremely moving. Overall, I had a fun trip and am really glad that I take AP Art.        

India is a vast country with immense diversity. Every corner of India has a different way of celebrating different occasions. One of the festivals that all of India celebrates together is Diwali. Diwali is one of the most awaited festivals in India and being an Indian I can verify this. Ever since I was a kid I used to look forward to Diwali. Lighting lamps (diyas), eating sweets and bursting crackers with my friends were my favourite parts. One of the other important aspects of Diwali is the Lakshmi Puja. This is a prayer ceremony in which family and close friends are invited and wealth and prosperity is prayed for. Some believe, diyas are put around the house and rangolis are made to decorate the house and Goddess Lakshmi blesses the well decorated houses (ones with lots of diyas and nice decorations) and passes over the relatively dark houses. Another belief is that Lord Ram came back to Ayodhya from his 14 year exile with his brother Lakshman and wife Sita and the whole country was decorated with lights to welcome him.

In true fashion today, people burst the noisiest crackers one could possibly buy, usually to compete with neighbouring families. The question of hierarchy comes into perspective here. Do they do this to show who is better or just for fun or to create noise? Well, I dont know the answer to these questions. After shifting to Dehradun, my way of celebrating Diwali has completely changed. For the first three Diwalis since I shifted, I have been in Woodstock. Every year I used to watch fire crackers being burst and to some extent it used to frustrate me because I could light them myself and having had the privilege of lighting them for so many years on my own, watching them being lit from a distance made me feel demoted. After watching the cracker being lit, we would get a snack in the dining hall along with some sweets and then followed the homesickness. Someone or the other would get homesick and talk about the times when they used to spend Diwali at home and have fun with their family. 

Coming back to our room at around eight in the evening and listening to the rest of the hillside burst crackers used to make me want to run away from school only for Diwali night. I remember one Diwali when after we burst all the crackers, at around ten at night, it started drizzling. We had Activity Week the next day and people were busy packing for it. The next morning I woke up to find leaves, branches, left over and burst out shells of fire crackers, boxes, and wet and slippery ground. It had stormed the previous night and luckily not for me but unfortunately for a lot of people, Diwali was washed out.

This Diwali, however, as it was a Friday, Dr. Laurenson gave us a fair-weather holiday. We were allowed to go home if we lived in good distance and spend an extended weekend with our families. Around 15% of the school celebrated Diwali with their families (me included) but the remainder of the school enjoyed the festivities here. I felt happy about going home to celebrate Diwali even though it was an extremely gloomy day for me. I missed my old friends who I used to enjoy Diwali with and I felt like the only thing I could do to "lighten up" my Diwali was watch other people burst crackers, which I did. The beauty of the crackers with the back-drop of the hills that you could see from my house gave me a new and different Diwali-celebrating experience, one that I have never have before and might not ever have again.          

This Activity Week was my last in Woodstock School and I chose to go to Dharamshala. Even though I had not been to either Goa or Hyderabad ever before, I never pictured myself going to Dharamshala with a group of friends outside school but now, my views have changed.

I am waiting for the day that I can go to Dharamshala again. The serenity and beauty of the place appeals to me and I thought it was a great place where one could just sit back, relax, absorb the culture around them and reflect upon their life. Below the hotel that we were residing in, there was a restaurant. It was one of my favourite hang-out places. They had books and magazines in the bookshelves that people could borrow and read in the vicinity of the cafe. There was also internet and really good food that you could order and sit back and enjoy. I noticed since my first day in Dharamshala that there was a man who used to come to the cafe every evening and needed quite a lot of help with activities. Being inquisitive, I asked around to find out what was wrong with him. One of the people who had come to visit him told me that this guy was a traveller who had been voyaging for the last 46 years. He has spent the last four years of his life in Dharamshala and was planning to start a blog about his ventures and stays in different places. When I asked him what ailment the man had, he simply answered, “no one knows but I think something significant must have happened to him since he has come to India which must have caused this condition.” After noticing him for a couple more days, I noticed that he needed help not only with eating and moving around, but also with sitting, getting up, sitting straight (someone needed to pull his shoulders back), etc. I had many questions in mind about him but didn’t know how to get them answered. On my third day there, I got a chance.

I was sitting in the cafe reading a magazine when a young looking American man came up to my chaperon and me and asked if we could help the older man eat his dinner. We agreed and went and sat with him. Even though it was hard to communicate with him (he was looking down most of the time and spoke extremely softly), we managed. “My name is Amram,” the man said to us in a soft voice. After we introduced ourselves, he asked us about where we were from, what we were doing in Dharamshala, etc. After a short conversation, my chaperon had to go for dinner. We had just started helping Amram eat his food. My chaperon asked one of my other classmates to take her place next to me and left. My classmate and I talked to Amram for a while. We found out where he was from, where he lived now, how long he had been in Dharamshala, etc. He started asking us about our families, friendships and relationships. Even though some of the questions he asked were hard to answer, we managed. Amram asked my classmate to pull his shoulders back numerous times and every time it was for a longer period of time. Even though I felt compassion for both Amram, who needed help with his daily activities and my classmate, who had to hold back the shoulders of a man who was four times older than himself. During our conversation, Amram told us, “do the things that make you happy. If something doesn’t make you happy, dont do it.” I pondered over his words for a long time. Where I stand now, I am making life changing decisions – what college I want to go to, what I want to do, do I want to follow someone else’s dream or my own, am I doing the right thing by making these big decisions on my own? Amram’s words have infused a new confidence into me and some of my decisions have changed while I have improvised on some others. Other things put aside, I really respect his thoughts and personally think that it would be a different learning experience from the things an educational institute teaches you to follow you heart and do what makes you happy.       

Today is the last school day before Activity Week, Sadie Hawkins and the beginning of yet weekend in Woodstock School. The theme for this year's Sadie Hawkins dance is Angels and Demons. Quite a few people have gone up to school for the event but there are a few people who are staying back in dorms and either sleeping, studying for their ACT exams which is tomorrow, packing for Activity Week or doing other things like I am. Most of my classmates are extremely excited for Activity Week especially because as an additional senior priveledge, we get to choose where we want to go and we get to plan the Activity Week on our own as well. Our grade has chosen three main locations - Hydrabad, Goa and Dharamshala. I am one of the many people going to Dharamshala. I decided to choose this trip because I feel that I can go to Goa and Hydrabad anytime. But Dharamshala is a place that I probably wont go with my friends every again, or atleast not to hang out. Dont get me wrong, I have nothing against the place, I have heard a lot of good things about it. But Dharamshala wouldnt have struck me as a place where I could go and hang out with my friends. I am, however, really looking forward to going on this trip and learning new things and having fun. Sadie Hawkins, another thing that a lot of people are talking about. In dorms, the corridor I live in is completely empty. Everyone has gone for Sadie Hawkins. I was asked by several people multiple times about why I am not attending this event even though it is my last in this school. Well, I dont really have a proper reason. I went to JSB last semester and found it extremely boring and I didnt want Sadie Hawkins to be like that. I know that just because the previous dance was boring doesnt mean that this one will be too but I had a lot of fun during Sadie Hawkins in eleventh grade and I didnt want to not have fun this time and then remember Sadie Hawkins as a bad memory. Ever since I came into High school in 9th grade, I have had a date and gone to Sadie Hawkins. Even though I didnt really enjoy myself much during the ninth and tenth grade Sadie Hawkins, I had an amazing time in eleventh grade and I owe it completely to my date. I didnt want to over-write a happy memory with not-such-a-happy one. I highly respect everyone who went to Sadie Hawkins today though. It is raining heavily, it is extremely cold, thundering, lightening and just not a good weather for dressed up people walking up to school but despite the weather, everyone had a positive attitude and smiled as the walked into the heavy winds. I look forward to giving you an account on my Activity Week and I am sure that it will be a lot of fun. Till I write next, Ciao.