Some songs take us in ‘a mini journey’ in our mind as we listen them whereas, the series of songs collects and juxtaposes many feelings together. I was left with many similar experiences on 8th September 2021, as I was fortunate to witness and judge the singing competition held for the primary grades of Adhyayan School.
Undoubtedly, the competition was running in the strangest of times. And I acknowledge some of us were going through a very challenging and infected time. In times like these we cannot run play-acting everything is going smoothly even when the reality has been treating us harshly. Admittedly some see the situation negatively and some seek positivity in the situation. But it is more radical to see every situation realistically, and in any given occasion I believe we should not waste any moment of celebration. The waves of despair and happiness takes turn but the way we react to them defines our long term stability. I hope this celebration has strengthened our students and brought joy to their family too.
To begin with, I was genuinely excited for an online singing competition. The joy that students feel in the school celebration can all be felt in them from days earlier to the event day. For this reason, I was keenly looking forward to make this special school day as one of the best memories of the online learning. While I could see some were seriously rehearsing their songs, some were impatiently waiting for their turn and some were simply in joy of witnessing the moment. Admirably, numerous students wished to participate in the event while the program was being run. It was these participations where I sensed the mutual encouragement in the listeners and the singers in the event. My only concern was to make every student fell included and heard in the event.
As I see, this singing competition was not just an online event but a sincere indication of our adaptability and our constant will to thrive even in the inflexible time.
-Yajyu Manandhar (Art Teacher)