Off to Bishop Cotton School

British Airways announces the departure of its flight from Dubai to….

That announcement by the airport always reminded me that my vacation was over, and it was time to go back to my grandparents or St. Andrews School.

The pretty BA air hostess would guide me through customs, on to the flight, meet the captain, see the cockpit, and get the captain’s signature as a member of the Junior Jet Club.

Today was different.

I had just turned 15 years old and told British Airways that I did not need an air hostess to escort me. I wanted to fly by myself.

So where am I heading?

A few weeks ago, I was having a discussion with my mother as to what to do after St. Andrews. I had my own convictions about where I wanted to go. My mother had her own opinions. So, the conversation went like this:

‘Mom, I want to go to New York, London or some big city to experience high school’

‘Nice try son, but I think at this stage in your life, a boy’s boarding school would be a great fit’

‘Seriously mom!!! Why?’

My mother who keeps detailed notes of my entire life brings out this nice folder with all the bills from St. Andrews.

‘Well you see son, the bills from your shenanigans at St. Andrew were more than the annual bill.’

‘Now mom, you are amazing, you are awesome and your only lovely child has passed grade 10 with flying colors and let me look at those allegations again.’

Mom brings out two pages of written notes and they are all numbered

Destruction of the chemistry lab (mom it was just to see how the frogs were doing)

Destruction of 14 frogs (mom I wanted to taste the legs)

Chasing girls with a frog in hand (they asked I showed it to them)

Entering the girl’s dormitory without permission (just visiting Vanessa and Maryam)

Destruction of a cauldron of soup (mom I was hungry)

Breaking pots in the garden

Entering apple orchards without permission

Waking up the entire dorm at midnight

Going on town leave without permission (mom breath deeply and let’s focus on positives of St. Andrews)

And the list went on

‘Son, I think you need some discipline and male bonding time. You have been around women too long.’

Mother was paying the bills and so she won.

I am heading to Bishop Cotton School, 160 years old, steeped in tradition. Most students are lifers. Very few are taken in grade 11.

I am in Lefroy house. This house has been the number one house for a long long time.

I meet some of the juniors who I knew from St. Andrews and then I met some of my classmates. We were about 16 of us in the first year. I meet Ashwani Virk (ash), Anup Bhalaik (skinny), Jatinder Taneja (tan) and a whole bunch of others. These three would become lifelong friends.

The bell went at 6 am. Time to get up and hit the hot showers.

After that, the dorm would be reviewed by the housemaster. The bed had to be clean, the nails had to be polished, the locker had to be sparkling clean.

Everyone had to stand in line and be reviewed by the house captain and then breakfast (breka).

The porridge was hot, the toast lavished with butter was just amazing.

Time to hit classes.

Lunch was always something fresh and delicious. As seniors, we sat on the other side. For less than ten of us, we had two servers. A little cash in their pocket always meant more food.

Tea was my favorite time. Fresh tea and those biscuits.

Sports. BCS was built around sports and playing against teams all over the country.

I played hockey, cricket, badminton for Lefroy house. Taneja and Minocha were not only great at table tennis but they represented the school as well. In tennis, the Thai guys (boffies) were just amazing.

Yes, I did try for the boxing team. For three months of the year getting up at 5.30 am, having a banana and two raw eggs and then running uphill for 1 hr. Did I mention holding two stones in your hands? Did I sign up for the marines?

I acted in plays, I wrote for the school journal.

I looked forward to the weekends.

Out of 300 boys in this 160-year-old Protestant institution,  only 4 protestant boys and one Catholic boy. Ajoy (RIP) was always chosen to round up the other four to attend mass on Sundays. Now hold on a minute, no one is converting me. Hey, we take the bread in the mouth, none of this taking in the hands’ stuff.

Did I mention, all 300 of us had to attend mass early morning before school. The hymns were legendary.

Jerry since you are a Christian around here you will do the reading. So once a week for the next two years in front of 300 boys and teachers, I would read from the scriptures. Arun Sachdev, a cardiologist was visiting from Thailand and while Vipul Goel, Arun and me are driving to Niagara, Arun starts quoting all these scriptures. Holy moly this guy knows the bible better than me.

Paul Yap (Malaysian), Sati (Swiss) (RIP) and I hung out a lot because of being the foreigners on campus. Paul had a sister in Auckland, so town leave always meant we had a date from Auckland house.

Taneja had a connection at Beads. The girls were the same age as us. For the first time, the maturity level hit me. I was so off base.

Unlike St. Andrews which did not have the policy to disbar students, you were on thin ice at BCS in terms of rules.

I did take apples from the orchards, I did take the furniture and threw it in the pool on all fools day, I did knock on Mr. Hakim’s (RIP) door and run. I will never forget Pannu who clogged the whole drainage system with his T-shirt. He got disbarred.

After the first year, a couple of students left. For grade 12, there were just 10 of us. The time passed and we were all moving on.

The last day of school was always tough. We all held hands and sang the school song.

Seven years after graduation, three of those ten graduates had died. In the grade 11 pic, I am standing between the three.

I get asked a lot about whether going to a private school made a difference in my life. It is a loaded question.

I learned loyalty to fellow Cottonians, to country, to faith, and to the law.

I learned discipline, writing skills, speaking skills, leadership, communication, how to dress and it was my first foray into multiculturalism.

In grade 12, the whole class took off to town without asking for permission. I mean come on we are all 17 and a bunch of prefects.

We got caught and as soon as we came back, we had to change into shorts and T-shirt.

All ten of us got whacked ten times by heady. I was the first to go and maybe he forgot to count but I got 11 shots. Man it hurt.

I never broke a law for the rest of my life. Didicit.

The author wishes to thanks Ashwani Singh Virk, OCA and Arun Sawhney for all the pictures in this article.

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What is a Boarding School

A boarding school provides room and board for students who live on the premises. These schools have been around all over the world. The boarding school provides meals and lodging can be co-educational or for either girls or boys.

Private School Quotes

I went to boarding school in the country, so there’s no real differentiation between family and friends. I was there from when I was 8 until I was 17 – it was insane. If you want my friendship, you are my family, and I’ll do anything for you – Jamie Campbell Bower

There’s something about childhood friends that you just can’t replace – Lisa Whelchel

It was my first day at St. Andrews, a co-ed boarding school.

I am 12.5 years old and about to enter grade 8.

The boarding school is already halfway through its semester.

I was nervous, scared, hesitant, worried, and insecure about what everyone would think about me.

As I enter my first class, a guy offers me a pen and paper. His name is Ish. Later on, I meet Naresh and Deepak. All three are 6’2”. This boarding school is in the land of giants.

My friendship with Ish, Naresh, and Deepak would become lifelong and span more than five continents.

In grade 9, Naresh gets nominated for school captain, Deepak becomes house captain and I become his assistant. Ish also becomes the assistant captain of another house.

The rivalry in sport at a boarding school is intense.

One day in grade 9, Ish and me decide to enter the girl’s dormitory to see how it looks like. The next thing I know Ish is lighting firecrackers in the girl’s washrooms.

The motto and ethos at the boarding school were really that no kid should be expelled, only given more responsibility.

The principal decided to give us more responsibility. We were responsible for a dorm of 30 boys.

One night after late-night studies, I tie the draw strips of all the boy’s pajamas while they are sleeping. Ish switches the lights on and off and I wake all of them.

In grade 10, it was time to get serious and get ready for the O level exams.

The final year was when we get to dissect the live frogs.

On a wonderful weekend, Ish and I decide to enter the lab to try and grill some frog legs. We break through the window pane and enter the lab. I am looking for the frogs. Ish decides to take pure hydrochloric acid, water, and mix it with the silver solution. Next thing I realize the whole lab is filled with smoke.

As a result of that, my parents got a big bill in the mail.

As we were preparing for midterm exams, it was getting late and we were hungry. We break into the kitchen and there is a big cauldron of soup cooking for the next day. So, we try to take a scoop, and the next thing we know the whole cauldron is on the floor.

You know the drill, in the principal’s office for the 10^th time, getting rebuked for how we are wasting our talent and that they will give us even more responsibility.

We would be responsible for making sure no one would be breaking any windows and the pots. I look at Ish and he had a smirk, as it was the two of us who were breaking all the windows and pots.

The O level exams arrive and we all graduate.

Deepak visited me on and off at BCS. Naresh headed to NY and I continued to visit Ish.

There would be certain nights we would crank call from midnight to 2 am.

I will never forget the wedding of Ish’s sister. The ceremony started at 2 am. Ish and I start throwing stones at the priest. Let’s just say he refused to carry out the wedding until we stopped.

Last week, Ish does a conference call with the four of us. We are all in different parts of the world.

The conversation always starts with everyone smiling, we talk about the different experiences at boarding school and later in life.

Then off course they all make fun of me as I am the shortest. The other three always aware of my spiritual nature inquire about it and I tell them I am still in touch with that aspect of my life.

We talked for an hour and rehashed many memories which I cannot print here.

Gentlemen, thanks for your friendship, your legendary hospitality, and hey even though you are atheist I will hang out with you anywhere any time.

Stay blessed until our next reunion.

Photo Credits: An early winters day on the River Severn by Jim Roberts CC BY 2.0, Eaglebrook School 2012 New Students by Eaglebrook School CC BY 2.o, Whitcombe Prefects, Portsmouth Grammar School by Richard Harrison CC BY 2.0, Bachelor Students – Chemistry Lab by NTNU  CC BY 2.0, Cricket by Patrick Doheny CC BY 2.0

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