We all have a school memory that makes us cringe. Describe your most embarrassing school moment in vivid detail. Did you swallow a pencil or miss your steps during a choreography dance
Of course, everyone has a school memory that makes them cringe. mine would be the time when the school proprietress caught me sleeping during a chemistry class.
During my high school days, I was not a big fan of the chemistry teacher, even though I was good at chemistry. At least that's what they say. His method of teaching and explaining notes always leaves one more confused than they were before the lesson, and I, in a bid to clearly understand every ins and outs of the subject, ask numerous questions. As an impatient man, he often shouts at me to read my notes. To avoid shouting and having issues, I just mope like a moron each time he is teaching.
But on this particular day, I was tired of moping and pretending I was getting the hints of it all. Half of my classmates were already complaining that the lesson was becoming more frustrating, asking him to stop so they could consult their notes and textbooks as usual. And truly, it was becoming really frustrating listening to the teacher dictate and explain notes as if we were final-year university students, leaving no room for questions. I couldn't bear it all; the noise and shouting from my classmates were giving me a headache, so I simply bent on my locker to have some rest.
It was about 5 minutes after I had rested my head on the locker when the classroom suddenly became quieter than a grave. You could even hear the sound of the tiniest pin if it eventually dropped to the floor at that moment.
I was confused by how quiet the classroom had become, so I raised my head to find out what was wrong. With questioning eyes, I looked up, but all I could see were my classmates' gazes firmly fixed on me. I became even more confused until my deskmate told me to look behind me.
And I did, lo and behold, the evil Lucianna (witch) was behind me, quietly tapping her 2000s heel on the floor, indicating I was in serious trouble. It was the school proprietress.
Clearly, she had heard the shouting of my classmates from her office downstairs and had come up to our classroom to know what the commotion was about, but rather met a more interesting scene: the head girl sleeping in class.
What made it even more interesting was that she had heard of me being an outstanding student, and during the prefect selection process, a lot of teachers were rooting for me to be the head girl, and they had put in words to her concerning me. *"She's a good girl, doesn't disturb, is brilliant, and pays attention in class." *
Good girl in the mud, paying attention by sleeping, huh?
I kept giving her the "it's not what you think" look, but she turned a blind eye to it and ordered me to follow her to her office.
Like a hopeless cow about to be sacrificed to the gods, I followed her to her office, praying for a miracle and thinking of a way to escape the advice and counseling 101 I unintentionally signed up for. But none was forthcoming. All I could do was curse and swear to deal with my seatmate for not waking me earlier.
When we got to her office, I was offered a seat, and then she began by asking if I was sick or something, and I replied no. When she was sure I was perfectly okay, she began scolding me, saying how disappointed she was seeing me sleep the entire 10 minutes she was in class, especially when lectures were going on, and how I was wasting my parents' money.
I thought we were done when she stopped blabbing, not until she brought out a chemistry textbook and proceeded to ask to me, to open to the topic the teacher was handling when she walked in. I had no stress doing so.
The real problem arose when she asked me to explain everything I knew about the topic, since I already knew it all and felt there was no need to listen to the teacher. All I could think of at that moment was to use the teacher as a means of escape by telling the school proprietress that the teacher's method of teaching was frustrating and he always said I should consult my notes each time I asked a question, so I was patiently waiting for him to leave the class before I did so.
But that would create bigger trouble, not just for myself but also for the chemistry teacher, so I kept quiet and listened as she scolded and hurled words at me, to the hearing of her assistant and other people around.
She even went as far as telling those who cared to listen that I, a school prefect—not just any prefect, but the head girl, was caught sleeping when a lecture was going on, and asking them if a soldier should be caught sleeping. I was embarrassed—no, humiliated is the right word, and what made it even more embarrassing was when she asked that I go teach the rest of my classmates the same topic while she and some other teachers I despise listened as well.
I kept praying for the bell to ring, signaling the break period, so this cup could pass over me. However, it seemed time had sworn to be my enemy for that day. When the whole episode finally came to an end, I returned to the classroom, specifically to my seat with a red face, ready to pounce on anyone that dared provoke me further.
When the last bell went off, signaling the end of the day's lecture, I grabbed my bag and headed home almost immediately, thoroughly embarrassed by the encouter with the school proprietress. I was the talking point for the rest of the week, and I was pretty sure my dumb crush did say one or two things about the incident.
Two years have gone by since that moment, but whenever it comes to my mind, I often find myself smiling and silently repeating, 'It's not what you think, ma'am.' 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
credits
image from Freepik, and edited using the Freepik editor