Empowerly

Student profile

“Did you see Rooney’s goal where he nutmegged Courtois?  Manchester United ragged Chelsea in yesterday’s match,” noted one of my new classmates as I walked into my dorm at Chinmaya International Residential School in Coimbatore, India. In my desperate desire to socialize, I asked, “Any Warriors fans in here?” I got blank faces, shrugs, and one guy burst into laughter. This led to a chain reaction of ridicule from a larger group. They didn’t understand a word I said because of my accent.  And since I didn’t speak Hindi, a language most of my classmates spoke, I didn’t understand them.

Later in the dining hall I tried my luck again, making my accent sound more Indian. “Wasn’t the dosa tasty?” I said to another student. “Eh man, the sambar is too much sweet bro. But the chutney is good na,” he replied with a string of jumbled, grammatically incorrect, incomprehensible responses in English. I did my mental autocorrect and tried to interpret all the sentences I heard for the next few days.

I had difficulty settling in at my new school. The other new students adjusted as though they had been here for ages. I didn’t want to lose my accent, diversify my interests or alter the way I thought just so that I could fit in. I missed my family and even basic things like my diet changed, as the food at the school was strictly vegetarian.

A few weeks into the school year, a classmate of mine, the one who was arguing about football on the first day, came to me and said, “Did you hear, James is moving to the Cavaliers.” That huge trade shocked me, but I was even more surprised that my classmate knew what was happening in the NBA. He then told me in correct English, “I remember that the first day when you walked in, you asked about the Warriors, so I decided to check on them. I wanted you to get settled, so I realized that if we could come to a common ground, we all could understand each other better.”

His gesture moved me. He lived in a world he was comfortable with, but he took the initiative to learn more about my world. He reached out to me and made me feel included.  His gesture was so kind and it helped me realize that I needed to extend myself and be part of his world and my school.

Gradually I started to change. I began to speak my mother-tongue, Tamil, with some of the students. I started watching soccer with my classmates and played field hockey. I began to appreciate the beauty and serenity of the campus which is located just outside a lush forest. I began to learn much more about the Hindu religion and Indian culture. We celebrated holidays in the school and I participated  in cultural programs by talking about the traditions and stories behind them.

Having grown up in northern California, I had never expected to spend 5 years at a boarding school in India. My world had been more confined then; I interacted with people just like me and I was comfortable in my family setting. I had everything I wanted and never had to stretch to my limits.

After a rocky start, I settled in smoothly. Once I realized that I needed to grow, change and adapt to my new community and school, I had a beautiful experience although it contrasted to the way I grew up. I am grateful to have had this opportunity. By interacting with new people, learning a new language, playing a new sport, adapting to a new culture, adjusting to a new system of education,  and exploring a new country, I have developed as a person. This has prepared me for my college experience.