I have had the opportunity to be mentored by some of the finest teachers. I fondly remember many of them for their unusual and witty comments. Here is one: “Why were you absent yesterday?” a professor asked my classmate. “Sir … my friend’s sister’s wedding.” “Let me be very clear. Unless it’s your wedding, you are not supposed to attend others’ weddings,” he shot back. It took a while for the laughter to subside in the class.
A couple of years after I finished college, my brother and I planned a get-together for our parent’s 25th wedding anniversary. One of our guests didn’t turn up. He later told us that he didn’t come because my parents got married on April Fool’s Day.
Once my father returned home earlier than usual from a wedding. He had gone with his colleagues. He told me that when they reached the venue—the bridegroom’s home—they saw a couple of workers painting the elevation. The wedding was supposed to happen in a couple of hours and things were not in place. Sensing something was seriously wrong, my father looked at the invitation. The wedding was on June 16 and they had gone on May 16.
Weddings in general have an unlimited variety—right from the choice of invitation cards to the bridal costumes. I got married in the pre-smartphone era. It was good to be the centre of attraction without any distraction of small groups of people taking selfies here and there. My brother got married four years later. As a dutiful elder brother, I was standing near the entrance welcoming guests. An elderly man came with extended arms, embraced me warmly and said, “It’s good to see the bridegroom here welcoming us.” I had to interrupt him, “No no uncle. My brother is on the stage. I am the elder one.” I took it as a compliment!
I have always loved to be a teacher. I will never turn down an opportunity to interact with students. Once I was invited by a college to give a talk on the recent trends in advertising, branding and designing.
The secretary of the college spoke for a few minutes before my talk. He urged the students to take part in such activities. “If your father is poor, it’s not your mistake. But if you are poor, it’s your mistake. Choose your career wisely!” he concluded. I began my talk from where he had left. “Sir, that was a wonderful concluding message. But that’s an old version. The new version is ...” I turned towards the students and said, “If your father is poor, it’s not your mistake. But if your father-in-law is also poor, it’s your mistake. Choose your life partner wisely!” It took a while for the laughter to subside.
Email: msjavid@gmail.com