In my previous article, I had mentioned that since Bethany Home School was not recognized by the State government as yet in the year 1969, the Founder Mrs Mignon David was looking for another High school to admit us for Class X.  She decided to enrol us into Bishop Cotton Boys school in 1970 to finish class 10, and so Mrs. Mignon David requested the Warden, Rev. I.L. Thomas to grant us admission into Bishop Cotton Boys High school, one of the best schools in the Country. My classmates Shoukath Ali and Ajit Shah too from Bethany also got admission to Bishop Coton’s school that crucial year of the ICSE Board Examination, thanks to Rev I L Thomas who obliged Mrs Mignon David for our admission.

The change from a small school like Bethany into a large and new school like Bishop Cotton Boys was like being thrown into an ocean for us. I was of course quite excited to see the huge playing field and the large classrooms. From being with three to four classmates in Bethany, I had 35 students in our class. But we soon adjusted to the new environment with a supportive Principal in Rev. I.L. Thomas and all the teachers in the school.

Rev. I.L. Thomas – Former Principal Bishop Cotton Boys High School Bangalore

I spent just one year in Class X in Bishop Cottons but it was one of the most exciting and memorable years in my schooling life. I must say that in this short time at this school, I was exposed to the opportunity of getting an all-round development and a holistic education which has helped me to a huge extent to this day in the field of education. 

Admin Block – Principal’s office

Apart from academics, some of the co-curricular activities that I participated in were:-

SPORTS & GAMES

Sports and games were something that I loved and it did not take much time for my games master Mr M.S. Shankar identifying my sporting talent. When cricket selection was being conducted to select the first eleven team, I was scared and nervous to even step onto the field to take part in the selection as I was a new student in the school and there were so many students who were trying to get into the team. On the first day of selection, I just stood on the parapet wall watching the selection when my friend Shoukath Ali who had seen me playing cricket went up to Mr Shankar and told him that I could play fairly good cricket.  Mr Shankar sent word for me and asked me to bowl at the nets. After some rounds of selection, the list of the first twenty boys was put up on the school’s notice board, and I was overjoyed to see my name on the list. I was then selected by Mr Shankar and the captain of the team Bobby Chengappa to open the bowling for the team in all our preliminary matches. I was given further tips and techniques by Mr Shankar to improve my skills further in pace bowling.  Unfortunately that year I had to miss out playing for the Cottonian shield as there was a rule that year not permitting a student who has not completed six months to play for this tournament and since I had been in the school for just about five months, I could not play this tournament.   But this did not deter me from participating in other games and sports.

When the football season arrived, I tried for the selection here too to get into the first eleven football team. I did not have the hope of getting selected into the team and so the next day I did not get onto the field and just watch the selection going on when our football coach Mr Khaleel Mehkri called me and told me that I had the necessary qualities of a footballer and asked me to report the next day for practice, which I did and was selected into the team playing in the right half position. With the experienced and expert coaching by Mr Khaleel Mehkri, we were one of the best school teams in Bangalore. The football team consisted of very talented boys like Shoukath Ali, Lalit Rai, Pasang Norbu, Lahdo Namgyal and if I remember right, the other boys in the team were Boppaiah, Stuart  James and Cherry Thomas.  We had won all our preliminary games in the prestigious Baldwinian Shield tournament that year but we were all crestfallen when we lost in the finals to Baldwin Boys High school by one-nil.  We were definitely a better team in the finals too, but maybe we were a little overconfident and thought we could defeat our opponents with ease.  The lesson learned was that we need to be confident but not overconfident. There were many of life’s lessons that we learned like teamwork, to put in your ‘All’ in anything that you do whether one loses or wins.  We also learned that one defeat or failure is not the end of everything in life, but one needs to continue to persevere and press on to achieve success.

Mr M. S. Shankar – HOD, Games, and Sports 

ATHLETICS

I realized that Athletics was another area of my strength since I used to spend quite a bit of time training even before I joined Bishop Cotton school and so in the selection for the school relay team, I was selected here too in the school’s relay team.  The relay quartet consisted of two brothers Thomas and Edwin Trencher and if I remember right, the other runner was Milroy Moses. I recollect with fond memories representing my PAK (Pakenham Walsh) House and also taking part in different Inter-school events, proudly representing our school.

I’m grateful and thankful to Mr Shankar and Mr Mehkree for all the skills and inputs that I had received from them in games and sports as this really helped me to kick start my career at Bethany school as the PE and games teacher.  Even without any formal training or qualification, I was able to coach and train the students because of what I learned from these Masters.

MUSIC & CHOIR

Another place in the school’s campus that I used to spend a lot of my time was in the ST PETER’S CHAPEL, a place where our morning assemblies were held and other worship services like our Annual Carol Service and the St. Peter’s Day service were conducted.  Since I was in the school choir, all our practice and rehearsal were held here in the chapel. I’m happy to see that this hallowed place still stands as a landmark in Bishop Cotton Boys High school whenever I get an opportunity to visit the school. Even now, whenever Bangalore hosts the AHAIS (Association of Heads of Anglo Indian Schools) meeting, the venue chosen is usually Bishop Cottons Boys school and the meeting begins with a worship service in the St. Peter’s chapel.

St. Peters Chapel, Bishop Cotton Boys High School 

I must mention here that my dear friend and colleague, the late Professor John Zachariah, Principal of Bishop Cotton Boys school used to host the meeting of the Heads of school with class and dignity and for this reason, all the Heads always wanted the venue to be in Bishop Cotton Boys school whenever it was the turn of Bangalore to host the conference. We will truly miss Professor John for our next conference in Bangalore.

The Late Prof. John K. Zachariah – (1960 to 2018) – Former Principal, Bishop Cotton Boy’s School

Music was another activity in Bishop Cottons and our school always encouraged us to participate in all these activities.  I remember attending an audition that our music master Mr Bruce Gabriel was conducting to select students for the school choir.  Initially, I was quite nervous to see the stern face of Mr Gabriel and his booming voice, but when he told me to take in two, three deep breaths before asking me to sing the scales, I became a little calmer.  He wanted to know whether I was able to pitch all the notes that he was playing on the piano and at the end of the audition he told me that he was grading me as an A+ singer, which according to him were the students who could pitch the notes correctly and had a good vocal range. I was selected into the school choir and put into the Bass section.  Mr Gabriel also taught me to play the trumpet and when I was able to play the instrument fairly well, he asked me to play the school song “ On Straight On, on Cottonian on” along with him playing the Saxophone for our outdoor assemblies in the morning. With his encouragement and support, I also formed a vocal quartet and the singers were Andrew Taylor, Ashwin Welch, and Edwin Trencher.

Mr Bruce Gabriel – HOD Music Department

Memories are still fresh of our participation in the various school functions where the choir had to sing, at our Christmas carol service, and especially in the celebrated St. Peter’s Day service that used to be conducted with dignity and solemnity every year on the 29 June.  Our Choir and the quartet also participated in the different inter-school music competitions and programs outside the school.

From Mr Bruce Gabriel I had learned how to identify musical talents in students, how to audition and grade voices, conduct a choir, train, and blend voices together to produce melodious harmony.  All that I learned under the able guidance of Mr Bruce Gabriel in Bishop Cotton Boys school helped me when I began my teaching career as a music teacher in Bethany school. 

LESSONS IN LEADERSHIP 

I’m also thankful to the Principal Rev. I.L. Thomas and my teachers for recognizing the leadership qualities in me and making me a senior prefect of the school that very year that I joined.  This was an honour bestowed on me by the school to be chosen as a senior prefect. It was a huge responsibility given to me by the school but with the guidance and support of the Principal and my teachers, I was able to discharge my duties effectively and as a result learned many lessons in leadership which today has helped me immensely in providing leadership in various capacities. It was not easy at the start to be a senior prefect when you are required to maintain discipline, lead by example yourself, and not make any compromise for what was right. I had to muster up courage and strength to do what the school expected of me as a leader and at the same time realizing that a leader has to also display humility and fairness in what he does.

ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE

Bishop Cotton Boys school was also known for imparting quality education and we had some of the best teachers to do this.  Even though some of us were so involved with all the extracurricular activities, our teachers saw to it that we did not lag behind. They were always ready to help us whenever we approached them even after class hours.  

Mr A T Balra, Former Principal from 1971……….

 

My thanks also go out to the late Mr A.T. Balraj, our Principal who took over after Rev I.L. Thomas left. He also taught us Maths for a while. After I joined Bethany school as a PE Master, Mr Balraj used to come and witness our Sports Day which used to be held in the Corporation ground at Richmond Town. He was quite proud of me and complimented me for organizing the event well. At one point in time, he even sent word for me and offered me a job in Bishop Cottons Boys school as a PE master and also promised to send me for training in Physical education.  But I was not able to oblige my former Principal and take up the offer. 

I’m also thankful to all the Admin and support staff who were ever willing to help us in the library, the laboratory, in the chapel, on the field.  Some of these people are Eddie, Martin, Adhimoolum.

I must admit that with all the extracurricular activities that I was involved in school, I did not give sufficient time for my studies but with the help of all my teachers, I managed to do quite well in my final Board Exams of ICSE ( Indian Certificate of Secondary Education ) in Class X.

I am thankful to my wonderful teachers who taught me: Mr D’Souza was our class teacher and taught us English, Mr Jaichand -Maths, Mr Ninan – Biology, Mr Paul – Chemistry, Mr Lobo – Physics, Mr Lokanath – Hindi, Mr Rodriguez – Scripture, Mr Paulraj -geography, Mr Iyengar -English.

Bishop Cottons Boys school also introduced the Pre University course (PUC) in 1972 and I joined the Junior college as the first batch of students to do this course in the school campus itself. Extracurricular activities were fewer in the Junior college and I was able to focus more on my studies and was doing well in all the subjects except in the second language Hindi which I thought was not such an important subject and would in no way help in my career and so took it very lightly.  But Hindi was a compulsory subject and a pass certificate would not be awarded in PUC if you don’t pass in this subject.

I was planning to take up medicine after my Pre University and Mrs Mignon David, my guardian was willing to support me all the way to do medicine and even told me that after completing MBBS, I need to specialize, then return to the Andaman Islands and serve the people who did not have much access to good medical facilities during those days.  As I was doing well in all my Science subjects, my teachers, especially my Biology teacher Mr Thomas Athyal also encouraged me to take up medicine after my PUC.  During our Biology practical periods, Mr Athyal used to call the other students to observe my dissection and the way in which I used to display the different specimens after the dissection of frog, earthworm or a cockroach and used to motivate the students to dissect and display the specimens the way I was doing it.

Mrs Mignon David had also spoken to the Dean of St. John’s Medical College, Bangalore about my interest in doing medicine after my PUC. I was quite thrilled with the fact that one day I would become the first doctor in my community. I was doing well in all my subjects but unfortunately, in my final year of PUC, I had failed in Hindi and therefore had to wait for another five to six months for the supplementary exam to clear this subject.  I cleared  Hindi in the supplementary exam but by then medical college admissions had closed that year and I could only apply the following year.

Not knowing what my next step would be, Mrs Mignon David asked me to join Bethany school as a teacher and help out with Music and games instead of waiting and wasting the whole year. She wanted me to be occupied usefully and since Bethany did not have a Music and PE teacher at that time, Mrs Mignon David wanted me to help out the school. Initially, I was quite reluctant to teach as I was only 19 years old and had no training and no teaching experience whatsoever.  But since I had no other option, I joined Bethany school as a full-time PE and Music teacher in 1974, and the school by then had shifted to a rented building on Langford Road, Langford Town, Bangalore.  In a way, it was good to be associated with the school where I had received my early education, and this was an opportunity to give back to Bethany. I made up my mind to contribute to the best of my ability and put to practice all that I had learned from my teachers in Bethany and Bishop Cottons. 

At this point of time in my life when I feel blessed and I realize that I have been a blessing in a small way to the society at large, my mind automatically takes me back to all my teachers, people, and events that I’m thankful for. Whilst having a deep sense of gratitude to my parents, family, friends and well-wishers, one major aspect that made the difference to me is my Alma Mater Bishop Cotton Boys High school, Bangalore, India.

May God bless my Alma Mater –

Nec Dextrorsum, Nec Sinistrorsum. ON STRAIGHT ON, ON COTTONIAN ON. 

My wishes to the OCs and PCs for the St.Peter’s day service 2020 – A service that was conducted virtually due to COVID-19.