Swrangsar Basumatary is a high school teacher. Most of the students he teaches have gone on to get big jobs; some have become businessmen, police officers, some have become teachers, some have become contractors, and some have become film actors and singers. He feels very proud of this. He feels like a successful teacher, but his eldest son was his own student. Even after taking the exam three times, his eldest son couldn’t pass the matriculation exam. He feels there’s nothing to be proud of in that. People talking about a teacher’s son failing matriculation three times has completely embarrassed him.
The school started off as a small venture. Only after many years of hard work did the school become government school, and they also started receiving a good salary. The family’s situation improved and they were no longer in financial trouble.
Basumatary is the only one who can get a government job in his own village. He knows exactly how much respect and honor he has as a teacher. He’s the one who says what should be written in government work, what needs to be corrected, and who needs to be properly explained to.
Even though he enjoys a lot of respect and honor in the area, he’s also had his fair share of scandals. His son has been caught multiple times as a drug addict, there’s been incidents with young girls at night, sometimes accidents on motorcycles, and he’s had to go to the police station repeatedly. He had to be there day and night for anything his son got into. He was told to handle his son well, give good advice, don’t spoil him with too much love or money, and that parents should be careful with their kids, etc.
He had to hide his face in front of his students out of embarrassment. His students also talked, saying that the young son of the respected sir had been beaten for being involved with drugs.
The son had taught the child in an English-medium school by putting him in the hostel. He kept depositing money at the school without interruption. On Sundays, he would visit the hostel now and then, bringing a handful of sweets, oil, soap, and Colgate for tooth-picking. He gave them new clothes, beds, pens, and pencils. But by ninth grade, the son was sent to the home back from the hostel due to his repeated offenses. Eventually, he even gave up on studying.
The father tried to get him enrolled in another school. He also asked where he wanted to study. But again, he didn’t want to study. He wandered around the house every day, left in the morning and returned at night, sometimes coming back only after four days. He asked his mother for money, and if she refused, he would argue with her and take the money.
He blamed his wife for spoiling the youngest child. One day he said to her, “The kid’s spoiled because of you. He’s gotten so full of himself, he can’t even picture what might happen next. If his mother had taken proper care, he wouldn’t be like this. Too much love has turned toxic.”
Omela replied, “What’s my fault? Who said anything about teaching him in an English medium? You were the one who decided he should learn English because he didn’t know it. I told you he should study locally, stay nearby, that he could learn good manners from his mother without formal lessons. Don’t blame me, the kid’s not only me.”
They often fought about the child. One day, they got some good news from their son, Swrangsar Basumatary. Omela was also at home then.
In front of his wife, he said, “Look, mother, my obedient child has made a big name for me. My son has passed MBBS. Soon, the leaders of the society will come to our home, the media people will arrive, and the villagers will come to get the news.”
His wife was very happy to hear the news. She said cheerfully, “Just like your own son. If he’s this good, he’s mine and the bad is yours. Remember, only because of me did this son get to study medicine. I took so much care of him, organized so much for him. I even scolded him when he did something wrong.”
Swrangsar Basumatary was really happy, and his wife was too. In that moment of happiness, they felt like successful parents. Their son was the first person in the area to become a doctor. The villagers were happy too and thought everyone should enjoy a good meal. Soon, they also thought about their younger son and eldest son, worrying about not being successful parents.
People came with news and congratulated their son for becoming a doctor, even shedding happy tears. Other kids asked how much he had studied and what he was doing. Their only answer was that they couldn’t let this happy day pass without joy.
A guest said, “Parents, kids, and everyone in society are all responsible for kids getting spoiled. Nobody is bad on their own; lots of things make them that way. Someone’s words, someone’s orders, someone’s pity, and someone’s bad actions usually make people act dumb. Nowadays, people just say ‘if it’s good, it’s because of me, if it’s bad, it’s because of you.’ We should all take responsibility for doing good, instead of throwing blame. Parents, kids, and society all need to be considered, and things should be fixed right away.”
Hearing this, Omela thought, “My kid didn’t get spoiled on their own. Someone made them want it, someone made them do it, someone pushed them, someone threatened them, someone called them…”