November 30, 2024

Such a bunch of hypocrites! Just a few days ago, these people were saying things like:

“Prof. BD is so boring!”

“I always feel sleepy in his classes!”

“His lectures are like a lullaby for me!”

“I’ll tell my children in the future, dears, sleep, otherwise Prof. BD will come!”

Now, these same people are teaching and preaching to me about what I should or shouldn’t say in front of him – the person I look up to after my brother!

What’s wrong with jokingly asking him if he’s inviting us for dinner after our end-semester exams? He even laughed at my joke and said, “Yes, why not! Let me check my schedule for that time.” He didn’t have any problem with my joke. Then why do these people have a problem with what I asked? I mean we’re a bunch of a Master’s degree students. Are we seriously not even supposed to ask for something as simple as a group dinner? Isn’t it time we stopped living in fear of professors and teachers?

The so-called respect that these people are teaching me to have for him is nothing more than fear; a fear instilled in us since childhood by our country’s education system. So much so that people forget that there’s thin line between fear and respect. True respect stems from admiration and understanding, not the fear of authority imposed since childhood. The very respect, you’re teaching me to have, isn’t respect at all; it’s fear, disguised and normalized.

Prof. BD the only professor here I feel comfortable enough to talk to about the real me, about my concerns, fears, and aspirations, ever since day one of this semester.

I’ve never once slept through or missed his lectures. For me, his lectures are not just lessons but windows to a world of possibilities. They are filled with wisdom and inspiration. And more than that, he, as a person, inspires me to strive to embody even a fraction of the qualities he so effortlessly exudes. I admire his calmness, his patience, and the unshakable, innocent, and comforting smile that he always wears.

And now these same people are suddenly declaring how much they “respect” and “admire” him? All they do during his lectures is sit on their laptops, playing games, chatting, finishing incomplete assignments, or outright sleeping! Is that how you show admiration for someone?

Now they’re planning to organize an appreciation class for Prof. BD at the end of the academic year. Isn’t it ironic? All a professor truly wants is for you to listen to their lectures attentively and participate sincerely in discussions. And if you can’t do that, at the very least, don’t mock their efforts by sleeping in class. That’s the most basic way you, as a student, can show your appreciation for their efforts.

These people don’t even participate in class discussions, and worse, they don’t let others participate either. They constantly taunt or pull down the person next to them if they try.

It’s so true what they say, "The human heart is fickle."