Special Hurdle Race

The new academic session had just begun at City Public School, and a new student had joined class six.

- Kumud Kumar

She looked quite different from the other children. Even the way she spoke was hard to understand. Everyone stared at her with surprise.

As the bell rang, Mona Ma’am entered the classroom. After taking attendance, she said, “Dear children, we have a new student in our class. Her name is Meenu.”

Just then, Samar spoke up jokingly, “But Ma’am, Meenu doesn’t look like us. Which world has she come from? Is she some kind of alien?”

Hearing Samar’s comment, the whole class burst into laughter. But Mona Ma’am became serious.

She said, “Dear children, Meenu is from the mountain region. Although her appearance is a bit different from ours, and you may find her speech difficult to understand, she is just like any of you. No one will mock her like Samar did.” Saying this, Ma'am left the classroom.

Immediately, Tanu mocked Meenu and said, "Hey Flat-face, do all people from your mountains have such flat faces?"

The class laughed again, but Meenu remained silent.

Raghav, who was as tall as a pole, considered Meenu short and nicknamed her Tiny.

From the very first day, Samar started calling her Alien. Some other students, as well, began referring to her by that name.

For Sapna, it had become a game to mimic Meenu's way of speaking using gibberish.

But not all the children were like this. Some of them sympathised with Meenu and became her good friends. They would even stand up to those who mocked her.

One day, Meenu sadly said to her mother, “Mum, many children make fun of me because I'm from the mountains. What should I do?”