One Picture, One Million Memories

 

The group of girls in their white uniforms and purple blazers, standing on the sidelines of AstroTurf greeted me with an unexpected, bittersweet punch to the gut— it was a photograph from my school days. It opened a flood gate of memories that drowned me in nostalgia; it has had me longing for the good old days ever since I saw it.

             

I vividly remember everything that happened on the day this photograph was taken. To begin with, it was taken at the LC (Ladies’ College) BC (Bishop’s College) Hockey Encounter. Now, this might sound like a regular event to you, but make no mistake! Think of it like SLUG, big match season, Bradby or Hayman-- it is an intrinsic part of the subculture within the two schools and is one of the most anticipated events on their respective calendars. The responsibility of organizing and hosting the event is generally alternated between the two schools. 

On this particular year, that responsibility fell on Bishop’s College. This meant that the school prefects would have to engage in an arduous day of duty in the hot sun and as a member of the guild myself, I was prepared for it. However, what caught me completely off-guard was the nature of the specific duty that I was assigned to carry out on the day. The thought of having to serve refreshments to VIP’s terrified me out of my wits, not only because I had already broken my mother’s fine china and couldn’t make tea to save my life, but also because the smallest mess up on my part would compromise the reputation of the guild and the entire school- no pressure at all.

Fortunately, time was on my side as the duty roster was posted a few days before the event, so I decided to make the most of it by practising at home. My mother was not pleased, to say the least, but allowed me to practice anyway because she preferred her fine china being broken over that of the school’s! I got the hang of serving eventually, but the Bishopian art of making the perfect cuppa still eluded me. School had provided me with a very specific set of instructions: I was required to pour in 1/3 cups of milk, then fill the rest of the cup with plain tea and finally add 2-3 spoons of sugar, but the problem was that I was not able to make it past the first step because my untrained eye couldn’t quite gauge the measurement of the milk. So, it was decided that I would be among those who would carry the plates, cups, saucers and all the tableware back and forth to do the actual serving while another group would carry out the preparations.

The 4th of October, 2014 finally arrived with all its usual cheer and sparkle, and I was ready for it! It was an extremely warm day, on account of which it was ultimately decided that we wouldn’t serve any hot beverages to the VIPs. This eased us to a great extent; the prospect of pouring cool, readymade juice into glasses was a lot easier than making numerous cups of tea. We began serving refreshments at half-time and everything was proceeding swimmingly, much to everyone’s relief.  It was then that it happened: I had just finished serving a round of beverages and was on my way to bring the next one when a VVIP (notice the extra V- it’s not a typo) requested a hot coffee due to an existing sore throat.  I politely acceded and told her that I would return momentarily. I maintained my outward composure as I walked to the rest of the group, but my insides were in utter turmoil because WE WEREN’T SERVING COFFEE, TO BEGIN WITH!! Now, you might be wondering why I couldn’t simply have informed this VVIP that we didn’t have any coffee to offer her, but trust me when I tell you that it wasn’t that simple- please take my word for it! Panic spread like wildfire throughout the ranks of the guild as denying this VVIP of her request was out of the question.

The only solution? Serve her coffee; there was no other way around it. If you’ve been to AstroTurf or know where it is located, then you’d also know that there is a McDonald’s situated right behind the field. The only thing is that you have to cross the racecourse stadium- which I might add has the capacity to hold no less than 10,000 people, I checked- to get to it. All the training that I had received as an athlete, I felt, had led to this very moment in time where I would metaphorically cross the Red Sea to buy a coffee. So, I took off my blazer, draped it over my arm and ran across that ground like my life depended on it. Upon reaching the other side, to my absolute horror, I discovered that McDonald’s was packed to the rafters because it was a Saturday; the queues were endless!! Enduring one of these queues wasn’t an option under the circumstances because it would have taken me at least 20 minutes to get to the front. However, the graciousness of a few Bishopians saved me. They allowed me to take their place near the front of the line so that I could be on my way as soon as possible. After purchasing the coffee, all I really wanted to do was sit and drink it because I was exhausted, but instead, I took a deep breath and set off on the second leg of my very own Amazing Race- this time in a brisk walk because running with a piping hot beverage would end in disaster.

I was greeted by the group of panicking prefects that were anticipating my arrival. They asked me to get my sweating, panting self together while they poured the coffee into a suitable cup for me to serve the VVIP. That’s when we ran into another problem: we didn’t have any teacups and saucers because of our decision to refrain from serving hot beverages. Hence, we had no choice but to serve the coffee in a glass. I desperately hoped that I would get hit by the hockey ball and go unconscious as I walked towards the VIP tent with that glass of coffee—I felt it would be less painful than what I was about to do. Thus, under the circumstances, you can only imagine my immense relief when the glass was unquestioningly accepted with a simple thank you! The rest of the day sailed by smoothly with Bishop’s College securing a victory in the U-19 category and the encounter ending in an overall draw. 

I was so glad that nothing had come of it and was ready to put the entire incident behind me, but then, something unexpected happened the following week. I went to the school receptionist to collect something that I had left there when she handed over an envelope addressed to me from the VVIP. Puzzled, I accepted the envelope and left to open it elsewhere. As it turned out, she had learnt of the events that transpired as a result of her request; inside, was a slip of paper with ‘thank you’ written on it along with the exact amount of money that I had spent to purchase the coffee from McDonald’s.

 Talk about a bittersweet punch to the gut.

 

Therushie Botejue