Touch Wood School

Dehradun has changed a lot lately, but our spot at 5/A D L Road feels like it has been here forever. It is right in the middle of Dehradun City, so there is always noise from the street outside. People are walking by, cars are honking, and the tea shops nearby are usually busy. Inside the gate of Touch Wood School, things are a bit different. We have the usual stuff you expect in a school—desks, blackboards, and that smell of chalk and floor cleaner in the mornings. The kids start arriving early, and you can hear them shouting from the end of the road. It gets pretty loud. We spend most of our time just managing the schedule and making sure everyone is where they are supposed to be. The building itself is an older style, not one of those fancy glass boxes you see popping up now. It has character, though some corners could probably use a fresh coat of paint if we ever got around to it. During the winters here, the mornings are quite chilly, and everyone comes in wrapped in heavy sweaters. We have a small yard where the students run around during breaks, kicking balls or just sitting in the sun when it finally comes out. It is a normal place with normal people trying to get through the school day without too much trouble. Sometimes the electricity goes out for a bit, but we just keep going. That is life at Touch Wood.