An Ode to Father Albert
The year was 2010. I was 4 years old when I walked into school for the first time.
All firsts are horrible, the fear of the unknown is all flooding and that’s exactly when we feel the most vulnerable. But for me, my school Don Bosco Berhampore has been my safe haven since day one.
Walking down the memory lane, I was terrified of my first day at school. I would be far from my family for the longest time since my birth. I still remember crying from the minute I woke up that day. Nevertheless, mum got me ready and both she and dad accompanied me to school. I got down from the car and my blood ran cold.
It was happening.
My greatest fear was coming true — — I would be so, so far away from my family. And there was possibly nothing I could do to prevent it. There were several other kids like me. Most of them were crying and a few almost looked as if they wanted to shoot themselves in the face.
I attempted to run back to my mother and instantly started crying for the millionth time that morning. My parents tried to console me as we walked past the gates of the school. Slowly we entered the campus.
And then there he was, standing at the centre of a small crowd of smiling children who were evidently having the time of their lives. That was Father Albert, my literal guardian angel.
As soon as I came near the crowd, he looked at me and smiled a huge loving, and beautiful smile.
“Good morning!”, he said. And that was when I stopped crying. His aura convinced me: if there’s one place in this world that is safe, this is it.
It’s not like I never cried for having to go to school after that day, the fear of being away from my family was great and it would not go for another year, to say the least. However I started enjoying myself; every single day Father Albert would be there at the school gate to greet many other children like me, who were terrified of school. On rainy days he would be the one to hold a huge umbrella for the kids both literally and metaphorically; after all, he was the one who both escorted kids safely to their classes and helped them move forward in life. He was the one who taught us our national anthem and each time when he would lower himself to tie shoe laces of kids, he taught us humility.
He would be there for each child when they were missing their families, who got hurt while playing, or even who were a bit rude to others; he would always be there to console and to teach. Yes, I was initially terrified of going to school, but my fear would die a little each time I saw him, my guardian angel, throughout the years.
As maa still says, I returned home smiling ear to ear that day and wouldn’t stop talking about how wonderful my school was.
School is rough for everybody and more when we are in our teen years; everything seems to change overnight and more often than not, we feel lost. I still remember that day when we were studying in class 9 and Father Albert took a class about puberty for the first time. He was there to say it was okay to feel lost, that it was okay to have feelings never really encountered before, it was okay to feel bad, even sometimes for no good reason; all of it was okay. He gave us ways to cope with so many problems. Truly, if it wasn’t for him, our teenage would have been a disaster.
And then when I went to school for the last time, he was there smiling just as he did 11 years before and each day in between. He blessed us, the outgoing batch, and wished us all the best with a lot of love. Some days I feel bad to have moved on in life; what if time stopped? What if I stayed a kid forever and went to my school each day? Then I remember, that if there’s one thing that remains constant in life, it most definitely is change, and this is also one of the innumerable life lessons Father Albert gave us.
Today, 2nd August 2022 marks his birthday and the completion of my first year at my new school. I don’t know if I could make him proud of me by my conduct at my new school, but there’s just one thing I can say: I tried my best.
Father if you are reading this, please know, that my life wouldn’t have been half as much beautiful as it is now had it not been for you. If I ever grow up to be a decent human being, it’ll be all for you, my school, and of course my parents. You have taught several people to live Father, and you’ll teach so many more. Here’s wishing you a very, very happy birthday and many more to come!
If there’s one person I see Jesus in, it’s you Father.
