The Father Of The Nation

“By education, I mean an all round drawing of the best in child and man in body, mind and spirit.” – Mahatma Gandhi

October 2nd marks the birth anniversary of one of the most beloved man in India – Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. This simple man has been a pioneer in the Indian freedom struggle. I don’t really need to elaborate much as everybody in India knows him. He was a man whose values and teachings were simple yet, they brought about an uproar on the British rulers and shook them to their core.

This day is observed as a National holiday and people across the country get together for prayer meets, commemorative ceremonies and tributes to this great leader. Songs are sung in his praise and movies on his life are screened. His statues are adorned with flowers and people pay their respects to him. Such a remarkable man he was!

Schools too, go that extra mile in celebrating this day. This is Riaan’s first year in his school and the way it was celebrated was amazing. The event was named ‘Bapu ke Anek Roop’ which means ‘The various facets of Gandhi.’ Children were asked to get dressed in Cotton or Khadi just like the Mahatma himself. Each classroom depicted one aspect of his life. The activities organised were also in sync with this. A classroom which depicted Bapu’s roots – the fact that he reached out to farmers and understood their plight was explained to the kids by asking them to plant a sapling and caring for it. A Dandi March was organised with his teachings printed on placards followed by a puppet show on the same.

My child who is just a pre schooler, now knows a tad bit about Bapu. He knows that we were at his school to celebrate Bapu’s birthday. It was more than enough for me to feel proud of my baby. That is how schools instil values in children. The enthusiasm to celebrate the day was outstanding. There were smiles and laughter all over the place just like Bapu wished for our country. I’m sure he must have been a happy man to see his teachings carried forward to the youngest generation.

Parents, please ensure that you are a part of these activities too as this is an opportunity for you to bond with your child. To be very honest, I too learnt a lot of new things about Gandhi that day.

Riaan thoroughly enjoyed the experience and came back with beautiful memories of the day.

Do you also have memories of such events at your child’s school? Do share them with us.

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