Your Hair May Grow White

I passed out from school in the year 1963, which is 37 years ago.

Some time back, I was invited by my class-mate, to meet some other class-mates that she was in touch with. I had to peer into a lot of eyes past the gray hair and the wrinkles, to recognise the girl I knew. It felt like starting a new friendship with most of them, but it was easy, because they were not new acquaintances. They were the girls with whom I had shared good, embarrassing, happy and sad moments during childhood.

We continue to meet off and on. At the get-together at my place, I had over 30 girls, not only from my school, but from my class. Remarkable I think.

We have accomplished the above task by our own efforts,  though the mammoth task was initiated by the efforts of Mahakhursheed Vakil.

A few years ago we arranged a picnic where we all  blew 50 candles in a cake together. We wished ourselves 'The Golden Girls' great years ahead.  and we sang our school song:

'Your hair may grow  white and your step lose its spring,
Your girlhood be left far behind,
But through all the mists that the long years may bring,
One longing will e'er  fill your mind,
Once more to be under the kindly mild rule,
Of the best School of all, Queen Mary's High School'.

We continue to meet off and on. Often we have a  'new' girl'  rather a renewed contact by some of us who have been meeting regularly. I do believe that 'people who need (love) people are the luckiest people in the world'

I am told that one ex-Queen Marian,  Sharada Joshi, now Dwivedi, at her book opening ceremony, dedicated her book to all the girls who have passed out from Queen Marys High School.

I dedicate this dal-sabzi note to the Queen Marian Spirit of the Class of 63.