Harshitaa Ashish
Amrita Vidyalayam, Kannur, Kerala

1st September

“New school year, class, and books but, same people, school and loneliness!” thought Koninah to herself, as she was on her way to school in her dad’s car leaning against the window. 

The drive from the village to school in the city was a long one. Koninah’s family belonged to the Masai tribe, and she is the first person to study in the town, and her parents believed that she could help develop their living for the future. But little did they know about her situation in school.

Koninah studied in an international school. Other students lived in the city, and their lifestyle was very different from her lifestyle. Hence, she remained isolated from her other classmates, fearing they might judge her bald head, height, and status. Anyone would always see her sticking at the edge of the classroom, all quiet and bored.

“High school would be fun!” said another student as Koninah entered the class. The first site into the classroom was few new students talking to the teacher, and then she saw the PGGs’ talking to each other, which were six girls who were popular from their class to the school. Koninah also noticed that among the new students, there was only a single girl. Seeing that, inside her, she thought, “If only the new girl became my friend, my life would change from the lonely and boring school life I lived till now.” But she was hesitated to talk first.

In the first period, every student introduced themselves to the new teacher. The new girl’s name was Jayne. On the same day, in their math class, they had a test about the basics, but Koninah hated the subject as she wasn’t good at it. 

7th September

At noon, it was Physical Education (P.E.) period, and it was Koninah’s favourite class. She had the advantage of being good in sports, mainly because she belonged to the Masai tribe. Masais had extreme physical fitness because of all the activities they did in their village. In P.E, everyone was made to do a cross country around the school for warm-up. Koninah was, as usual, very fast, and in front of everyone. All of a sudden, she got a muscle pull and was stuck. Jayne was behind her, and when she passed Koninah, she teased, “Why did you sprint in the beginning? You should run slow at first and then speed up at the end.” Koninah boasted, “I am good at sports, but today I was unfortunate.” Jayne smiled and helped her get up and asked, “Should I wait for you?” but Koninah said, “I am fine; you should go finish the run.” But Jayne disagreed and stayed with Koninah. While they were strolling, Koninah wondered, “Why does she want to help me? Is she trying to make fun of me because I failed in my sports ability? Or does she want to say something weird about me to the PGG girls?” 

Two days back, Jayne was hanging out with the PGG girls, and while they were talking, she asked them why they didn’t take Koninah with them. They started criticizing Koninah saying that, she was from the Masai tribe, ate a lot of raw cow meat, drank natural blood, and lived in small huts. But Jayne didn’t feel anything wrong about it and knew it was part of their ritual and tradition. 

So, while they were walking, Jayne asked Koninah, “Do Masais drink blood?” Koninah was confused and surprised. She guessed, “Did the PGGs say that to you?” Jayne said, “Yeah! And what does PGG mean?”. “PGG means popular girl group, and there is one for every class”, Koninah explained. “The system of drinking raw blood is followed by those living the savannah, and most Masais don’t do that. I have never done that.” Jayne introduced herself, saying that she was from Sri Lanka. 

As they continued, they reached back to the ground, and warm-up run was over.

14th September

The math teacher announced that “The math test paper has been corrected in the first period, but everyone forgot to write their names on their paper.” Therefore, everyone had to find their paper. Koninah knew that she didn’t do well on the test. So when she saw an article with a horrible handwriting but with a good score, she decided to take that paper. Jayne was late at the same time when she reached; there was only one paper with perfect handwriting but a bad score. 

At recess, Koninah was standing alone next to a pole outside the classroom, watching the other people playing and having fun, and she didn’t have anyone to talk to. “Koninah!” Jayne surprised her from the back, and Koninah freaked out. Koninah felt guilty about taking Jayne’s paper, so she didn’t say anything to her. But Jayne already knew that Koninah took her paper, so she said, “Your handwriting is quite nice, but it seems like you don’t have any knowledge about the math. I could help you.” Koninah was hesitant, but deep inside her, she felt that it was her chance. She said yes, and Jayne helped Koninah with the subject every free time they had, and they eventually started talking a lot and became very close friends.

They would be together in the classroom, canteen and almost everywhere. One day during a study field trip, another boy from their class called Patrick was walking beside them. He asked, “Why do I find you two together all the time everywhere?” “Do you have a problem with it?” asked Koninah in a bossing tone. He said, “No, I was just asking, and good for you that you finally found a friend!” 

Koninah then told Jayne her secret that she had a crush on Patrick, and she has never said that to anyone in her life. Jayne chuckled, “I am honored to be the first person to know your strange secret.” It was funny how Jayne got excited for Koninah. During class tests, when students had to correct their paper, instead of the teacher mutually, Koninah and Jayne would correct their answers and give each other a good score. Jayne would bring a Sri Lankan dish, and they would share, laugh, and joke while eating.

Koninah also invited Jayne to her home one day during the weekend; it was very far from the school. And Koninah’s family showed Jayne their farm, animals, narrated stories about their tribe. Koninah also took Jayne to a shelter where they met many little orphans and helped them with food.

21st September

It was the day of the monthly sports event. And every class had to go for a cross country run. Koninah was excited because it was her showtime, and she was also one of the best students in sports in the school. On the other side, Jayne was very nervous. The cross-country run was at noon, so in the morning, the two girls were chilling on the ground watching other sports. Koninah appreciated, “Jayne, do you know that you are my first closest friend? All this time, I thought I was very different and people from the tribe cannot be friends with other people from the city.” Jayne grinned and explained Koninah, “Friendship is not about: who you are? Where you come from? How do you look? It is all about understanding, being there, supporting, and, most importantly, trusting each other during any situation. Friends care and also accept each other the way they are. When I found out that you’re a Masai, I was honestly very excited to have a unique friend for the first time that I will remember forever. And I didn’t find you odd at all.” 

Hearing all these words that Koninah never heard from someone and never thought about herself gave her a strange feeling she never experienced before. It was the feeling of friendship, which she never experienced till that day. All Koninah did was smile. When the cross country began, Koninah could feel her heartbeat fast and be very happy. While they were running, Jayne got tired and told Koninah to continue. Koninah didn’t forget the first time they met and talked when Jayne helped her. Hence, Koninah held Jayne’s hand tightly and pulled her all the way while running. They were at the front, and when they reached the end, Jayne let off Koninah’s hand & let her finish first. Koninah won first for the cross-country run. 

30th September

Early in the morning, Koninah was dropped at the school by her dad. It was the end of the month, and she thought it would be perfect if she gave a gift to her best friend Jayne for making the first month of high school a crazy one. When she entered the class, she saw Jayne distributing sweets to everyone. Koninah gave her the gift; it was a novel. Jayne immediately pulled her outside and explained, “Today is my last day in this school. Don’t freak out!” Koninah was confused and thought she misheard. Jayne again explained that “My family came here because of my father’s work, and we didn’t have plans to go back, but unfortunately we have to, for a reason.” Koninah felt numb and was utterly bewildered. But she didn’t want to disappoint or show her emotions to Jayne, so she was cool about it and sighed, “Then let’s have a perfect time today!” Jayne was shocked and relieved that Koninah wasn’t staggered. 

The day was completely normal; they had all their classes and had a lot of homework. At lunch, they talked and laughed about silly things. They chilled at the school ground, and both of them wrote notes for each other so that they could remember each other forever. They had so much fun at art and P.E class in the evening. 

At 3:15 pm, the last bell rang

It was time to leave. Jayne parents were waiting for her in the car, and so was Koninah’s dad. Both of them were sad from the inside, but they couldn’t stop smiling at each other. They hugged each other so tight like they never did before. Within ten seconds of their hug, Koninah had a complete flashback of all the memories she had with Jayne in just 30 days and was very grateful for it. Jayne was excited but also had vague thoughts about what she would experience back in Sri Lanka. Jayne gazed at Koninah’s eyes and said, “Let’s meet each other again one day, when we are all grown up and have jobs!” Koninah gave a fond look and said, “Take care!” 

Both of them left school. Koninah realized that she had experienced something not just very new to her but also realized that; the right people you meet in your life will always make you feel happy and accept you the way you are. It is essential first to interact to know the kind of person they are. Being different is being unique.

Jayne spent only 30 days in Koninah’s life, but it created a significant impact. She made Koninah know the importance of being yourself and loving yourself the way you are, and it can give you great memories.