Gandhi Matriculation Higher Secondary School

Out here in Kadampalayam, things move a bit slower than in Namakkal town. Our school sits on a decent piece of land and you can see the hills in the distance on clear days. It started small and we just kept adding bits to it as more students from the surrounding villages needed a place to study. The walls have been painted a few times, but you can still tell it’s an old building that has seen a lot of classes come and go. We don't have those big glass windows or air conditioning. It’s just open windows to let the breeze in, though it gets quite dusty when the wind picks up across the fields. The teachers arrive early on their scooters and the buses bring in the kids from the further parts of the district. It’s a lot of work keeping everything running, from the water tanks to the playground equipment. We spend our days following the schedule, making sure the registers are marked and the lessons are finished before the sun gets too high. Lunchtimes are the loudest part of the day when everyone sits under the trees to eat. It’s not a fancy setup, but it’s what we have here in this part of Namakkal. Most of us living and working here grew up in these same circles, so everyone pretty much knows everyone else’s business.