Real education

K_Murali Kumar Hope better (civic) sense prevails. Photo K. Murali Kumar. Who is an educated person? A person who has enough knowledge and can apply it in real life. An uneducated person is supposed to be the one without that knowledge. But in general, people's idea of education is different.

One Wednesday, I was tired and famished and waiting for the train that would take me back home after school. I sat in the nearby rickety bench gazing at the trees which seemed mesmerising. Then my attention shifted to the school kids playing, a few women discussing about inflation, and the untidy floor with speckles of food all over.

Civic sense

A young flower seller with patched dress and long neatly plaited hair came and occupied the seat next to me. A gentleman who seemed to be well educated and worked for a reputed IT company (the id card said so) sat in the other seat beside me munching a packet of chips. The gentleman beside me threw the chips packet down after he was done with it. While I was debating if I should pick it up and throw it in the dustbin, or just mind my business, the young girl next to me got up without any hesitation, picked up the packet and threw it in the dustbin. She told the gentlemen that it was wrong to throw the packet down and enlightened him on the outcome of such unsocial activities. The gentlemen flushed with shame and apologised.

I was startled to see a young girl teaching a well “educated” person about common sense. Hats off to that girl!