Down the college memory lane

As I look back, I do miss those halcyon college days. They were one of the best episodes of my life. The English lectures that I avidly looked forward to, some Primary Classes (which weren't of my interest) where all I did was pass perfunctory nods like all good students do for the love of teachers' efforts, the Nu 2-per-cup lemon tea I relished in the canteen after the class hours, the haa's and huu's I breathed out loud in the even Taekwondo club with Master Kezang Dawa, the college library I loved to be in because it was the only place where AirCon was installed, the football field where I greeted countless goals in my net (much to my mates' chagrin)--it's never so easy to be a goalkeeper, the last-minute adrenaline in having to complete a mountain of assignments, the hours I spent in Yongba's bar for a pint or two, the train dances I did with my friends in the once-in-a-month jam sessions, the late-night chantings and cheerings for Manchester United in the hostel TV hall, the crush that got crashed like it happens with most of the boys... and the list goes on (I'm only getting started).

College Marathon, 2010

How did I become a Multi-Trillionaire?

When Dr Solomon Wang (Motivational Speaker based in Nebraska, USA) visited schools across Bhutan giving teachers motivational talks between 2016 and 17, he also had some brain-breaks between his sessions prepared to keep the audience hooked until the end. One of them was a general quiz session. There were about a few hundred teachers housed inside the multi-purpose hall at Samtse Higher Secondary School, and I happened to be one of the lucky attendees. 

As I said, one of the fun activities was a general quiz. It had a handful of questions thrown out to the crowd, and we were to answer them in our notepads. It was then followed by self-assessment as Dr Wang revealed the answers one by one. He hastened to add that he had his full trust and faith in us while we self-assessed answers and marked ourselves. I’d wondered why not; it’s a part of teacher’s job, after all. So as the results were declared, I happened to win this Zimbabwean note, and he added that I was then a “multi-trillionaire”.

Come back tomorrow to count the zeroes again!

Yes, it's legit: One Hundred Trillion Dollars!

*A resounding round of applause* and giggles. 

 

So if you’ve been thinking that I’d become super-rich since then, the answer is yes. I haven’t spent a single cent yet. But, here’s a catch: first off, it was just a fun activity! And next, if I’d really thought of converting it to the US dollars, Dr Wang told me I had to pay $4 as an exchange fee in return for a mere $1. It’s like I lose both this note and $3 for nothing. If I’d done that, how would have I been different from the legend Meymey Haylay Haylay*? But, forgetting all that, I’m still and the only multi-trillionaire that Forbes doesn’t yet know about. 

 

*A popular Bhutanese folktale where a man called Meymey Haylay Haylay keeps bartering his superior stuff with some inferior ones until at last, he's left with nothing. It's also used as an expression to connote that someone's up with a foolish scheme that will desert himself at the end.