In our child-like innocence, we worshipped in you the light beautiful,
You goaded us, disciplined us, making us learn things awesome and wonderful;
Admiring and amazed, we were like wet clay in the hands of expert potters,
Clinging to you for mind’s nourishment and support, like your very own sons and daughters.
Part of 1969 batch, Central School, Mathura (UP)
In our coming of age phase, you taught us to enjoy our freedom with responsibility,
Made us crunch complicated aphorisms and equations, keeping up our mental agility;
You had a tireless step so difficult to keep up with, our nature weary of concepts too great,
Prisoners of our human limitations, searching for livelihood, theoretical equations we did hate.
1974 batch, Delhi University, Department of Physics
As we blossomed further, we found you to be friends, philosophers and guides,
At times we misbehaved but you continued exhorting us to explore unchartered waters and tides;
You were close to our hearts, yet distant, objective and impartial, difficult to comprehend,
Pushing us towards aims we could start understanding only when our association was about to end.
1975 and 1976 batches, UBS, Panjab University, Chandigarh
We explored new frontiers of music, dance, drama and elocution,
Hobnobbing with celebrities, we learnt the art of event execution;
The City Beautiful had seasons in which our romantic thoughts easily led to transient infatuations,
Acquiring everlasting friendships, we braced to enter the business world to handle real situations.
A friend, philosopher and guide, circa 1994
RIP, 2018
Some of us chose the challenges of entrepreneurship; some enriched the civil services archives,
Most of us crafted highly successful careers, adding value to our organizations, as also to our lives;
You were the platform from where we, like Jonathan Livingston Seagull, soared in the sky azure,
We continue to hold aloft the ideals and values learnt from you, our love and regards certainly pure.
ashokbhatia 