The Difficulty of Being Bright

Kiran was an exceptionally bright student.  She was  most certainly the teacher’s pet. During the Open House, teachers sang paeans   to  her ability to grasp, to express, to explain and so on and her parents  beamed with pride every  single time.

It was a given that she had to be so. Her parents were  reputed medical practitioners. Those who knew them said, Kiran had to be bright. Look at her parents!

Kiran loved the attention and adulation. Some times in an attempt to make friends, she even laughed at the average  jokes of her classmates and it helped. At least while on picnics or excursions, she didn’t have to be alone all the time.

When she came to ninth standard, the ambitious Principal decided to try out a new strategy to reap more glory .She picked toppers from all sections and formed a new class, the star batch of the school. These were the kids who bore the burden of the reputation of the school. They were reminded of their sacred duty every day. The chosen ones were a proud lot. Kiran  too enjoyed the recognition.

As the session started Kiran was at her  competitive best. She worked hard  to beat her competitors whom she knew were not to be taken lightly. She did reasonably well but was not outstanding  among these nerds. She had started calling them that. She felt confused and unhappy. A heavy silence of resentment set in her heart. Home was not as welcoming either. It took her more than a year to come to terms  with the situation. That one year was when she was her saddest. There was no one to talk to. While her  heart wept and hormones played havoc with her emotions, her  doctor parents remained aloof, leaving it to their  capable daughter to top the class, no matter what.

Meanwhile, her walking  back home with a similar troubled soul had sparked a new rumour. Aunties in the colony knew for sure what  her problem was, Distractions, you know, they whispered.

At the Engineering  college, Kiran was again a loner. But now she had her defense in place. She rarely interacted with the  mediocre or the unruly. Her focus was to be the best and that she did consistently.

Many years later as the GM  in a reputed company ,she opened up to share her  pain, her hurt in front of her juniors.  She  spoke about her struggle of being a bright student.  She said that its her husband who told her it was OK to be the way she was. And that was when  she  learned to relax and let go…

Its OK is a powerful phrase indeed.