Nalini’s journey with The Valley School started in 1982 when she used to visit the campus as a young person and, in her words, the fragrance of the wilderness, the silence and the ambience of the school gripped her. She started teaching at The Valley School in 1988; but moved away from Bangalore to Uttarkashi shortly thereafter. Later, from 1991, she worked at Rajghat Besant School and then returned to work at The Valley School after 1994. During this time, she has interacted with children and adults across age groups and has been instrumental in holding art camps and bringing artisans to these spaces. She also teaches art at Goonj, an NGO.
In the large canvas of life many teachers have helped me, nurturing me at various stages, and each of them is so special to me in different ways. I would like to share a few evergreen memories of them.
Amma, my mother, had only a secondary school education but was a wonderful veena teacher. She had immense patience with her students, gently and joyously teaching them veena or vocal music, at their own pace, relating like a friend with each one. Practice sessions with her students after school or college would go on till dusk, filling our home with the ‘naad’ of the veena. With music and living being woven together, by default we absorbed music by listening. Listening was a key to learning.
My schooling, with its emphasis on academic excellence, competitions and constant comparisons, did not interest me. Participating in everything without being judged or competing was what I enjoyed. Showing curiosity or asking questions was frowned upon in class. Added to this were the woes of studying history and geography in Hindi. Without really understanding much, I mastered the art of passing examinations. A part of childhood was left untouched, alive….to hold the wonder of the universe!
Yet, the presence of a vibrant music teacher at school brought me tremendous joy. She found the time to introduce a few of us to various types of vocal music: Kabir and Meera bhajans, Tagore’s compositions, some patriotic hymns, and songs from many faiths. Besides, we also played in an orchestra, learnt new instruments, and so on. Each month in the assembly, she taught a new regional song of India for an entire school of perhaps 1000 children. Apart from the cultural events that were held in school, she took us to All India Radio, Doordarshan, foreign embassies, temples, and elsewhere—every opportunity to sing and perform in public. Listening and practicing music with this affectionate teacher is what made my school days tolerable. She opened the doors of my imagination, even though it was mainly through competitions.
These two teachers, and these experiences of learning outside the boundaries of classrooms, had a great impact on me as a growing child because I loved doing things on my own. Soon my urge to understand, learn and absorb things from the world of nature for its own sake, and not to earn grades, found a great doorway opening when I first stepped into The Valley School. On my first visit there, the fragrance of wild grass filled my senses. Listening to Krishnamurti opened the floodgates to life, nature and education. Here, living and learning together was a large part of education.
My sister and brother-in-law were already working at The Valley School. Walking through the wide valley surrounding the school, listening to the happy chatter and laughter of teachers and students discussing work, art and music made me feel sure that this was truly a place I wished to engage with. My husband and I were in our twenties when we joined the Krishnamurti schools. It felt like beginning school all over again. We plunged simultaneously into teaching and learning, and this made each day vibrant and lively. In the different K schools that we were part of, with many trials and errors, one could learn effortlessly, with different age groups, facing various challenges. Relating to friends working with passion in their own areas, working together with them, I learnt tremendously.
Finally, all this learning culminated in Nature. I am truly grateful for all the nurturing that happened in these schools. These schools are like sanctuaries for children, trees, animals, insects and birds alike. Each school is a living encyclopedia with its surrounding open spaces and life forms…each calling and inviting me to learn. At this point in life, when I am volunteering in the school, Nature is my teacher. Wandering for hours in nature; watching and listening; sketching and painting; sharing these learnings with children and adults; I have all the time to pause, to wonder and watch a snail go by….