My Childhood

Summary

‘My Childhood’ is an extract taken from the autobiographical book, ‘Wings of Fire’ by
A.P.J.Abdul Kalam. Here Dr. Kalam who was one of the greatest scientists of India and also
the 14th President of India gives an account of his childhood days. His journey from a
middle-class family in Rameswaram to the President’s house has not been a smooth ride. He
worked hard and faced all the challenges of life. This great scientist and the missile man of
India was born in a middle class Muslim family in 1931 in the island town of Rameswaram,
Tamilnadu. In his childhood he was greatly influenced by his parents, his teachers and his
friends. His father, Jainulabdeen, was not much educated but he was very generous and kind
person. He was not rich but provided a secure childhood to Abdul and his siblings. Abdul
inherited honesty and self-discipline from his father and faith in goodness and deep
kindness from his mother.
Kalam earned his first wages by working as a helping hand to his cousin, Samsuddin, who
distributed newspapers in Rameswaram.
During his childhood he had three close friends- Ramanadha Sastry, Aravindam and
Sivaprakashan. Once when he was in fifth standard, a new teacher asked him not to sit in the
front row along with Ramanadha Sastry, the son of a high priest. Abdul found Ramanadha
Sastry weeping as he went to the last row. This made a lasting impression on Abdul.
Abdul was also greatly influenced by his science teacher, Sivasubramania Iyer. He learnt the
lesson of breaking social barriers from him. Iyer invited him to his home for a meal. His wife
was an orthodox Brahmin who refused to serve food to a muslim boy in her so called ritually
pure kitchen. Iyer himself served Abdul and sat down beside him to eat his meal. The next
time, Abdul was invited, Iyer’s wife served food to Abdul and thus Iyer was successful in
changing the conservative attitude of his wife.
For higher education he sought permission from his father to leave Rameswaram and study
at the district headquartes in Ramanathapuram. He said, “Abdul! I know you have to go away to grow. Does the seagull not fly across the sun, alone and without a nest?” To his hesitant
mother, quoting Khalil Gibran, he said, “Your children are not your children. They are the
sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself. They come through you but not from you. You
may give them your love but not your thoughts. For they have their own thoughts.”

Comprehension questions

(a)How does Mr. Kalam describe his father?
Mr. Kalam’s father, Jainulabdeen had neither much education nor much wealth,
despite these disadvantages; he possessed great innate wisdom and a true generosity
of spirit.

(b)How does Mr. Kalam describe his childhood?
Mr. Kalam had a materially and emotionally secure childhood. His father the children
all necessities in terms of food, medicine or clothes but avoided all inessential
comforts and luxuries.

(c)What did Abdul Kalam do when there was a sudden demand for tamarind seeds in the
market?
He used to collect the seeds and sell them to a provision shop on Mosque street. For a
day’s collection he would earn one anna.

(d)What was affected first when India joined the Allied forces when the Second World War
broke out?
When India joined the Allied forces during the Second World War and something like a
state of emergency was declared, the first casualty was the suspension of the train halt
at Rameshwaram station.

(e)Why did Abdul Kalam’s cousin need a helping hand to distribute newspapers?
There was a suspension of the train halt at Rameshwaram station during the Second
World War. Hence newspapers for the Rameshwaram town had to be thrown out from
the moving train. Therefore, Kalam’s cousin needed help to catch the bundles.

(f)Who helped Kalam earn his first wages and how does he feel about it?
Kalam’s cousin Samsuddin helped him earn his first wages by hiring him to catch
bundles of newspapers thrown out from the moving train. Half a century later also
Kalam felt a surge of pride in earning his own money.

(g)What did Abdul Kalam and his siblings inherit from their parents?
Abdul Kalam and his siblings inherited honesty and self-discipline from their father
and from their mother they inherited faith in goodness and deep kindness.

(h)Who were Abdul Kalam’s close friends in his childhood? What did they all grow up to
become?
Abdul Kalam had three close friends in his childhood- Ramanadha Sastry, Aravindan
and Sivaprakasan.
Ramanadha Sastry took over the priesthood of the Rameswaram temple from his
father; Aravindan went into the business of arranging transport for visiting pilgrims
and Sivaprakasan became a catering contractor for the Southern Railways.

(i)How did Kalam’s family contribute during the annual Shri Sita Rama Kalyanam ceremony?
Kalam’s family used to arrange boats with a special platform for carrying idols of the
Lord from the temple to the marriage site, situated in the middle of the pond called
Rama Tirtha which was near their house.

(j)What happened when Kalam was in fifth standard?
When Kalam was in fifth standard a new teacher could not tolerate Kalam sitting next
to the son of a Hindu priest. He asked Abdul Kalam to sit on the back bench in accordance with the social as the new teacher saw it. Abdul Kalam felt very sad and so
did Ramanadha Sastry because Abdul Kalam used to always sit in the front row with
him. The image of Ramanadha Sastry weeping when he shifted to the last row left a
lasting impression on Abdul Kalam.

(k)Why did Lakshmana Sastry summon the new teacher?
Lakshmana Sastry summoned the new teacher because he was trying to spread the
poison of social inequality and communal intolerance in the minds of the innocent
children. He asked the teacher to apologise or quit the school and the island.
The young teacher not only regretted his behaviour but was ultimately reformed due
to the strong conviction with which Lakshmana Sastry conveyed the message to the
teacher.

(l)What happened when Abdul Kalam’s science teacher invited him to his home for a meal?
One day when Sivasubramania Iyer invited Abdul Kalam to his home for a meal, Iyer’s
wife was horrified at the idea of a Muslim boy being invited to dine in her ritually pure
kitchen. She refused to serve him in her kitchen. Sivasubramania Iyer was not troubled
nor did he get angry with his wife. Instead he served Kalam himself and sat down
beside him to eat his meal while his wife watched from behind the kitchen door.

(m)What happened when Abdul Kalam visited his science Teacher’s house for the second
time?
When Abdul Kalam visited his science Teacher’s house for the second time,
Sivasubramaniam Iyer’s wife took him inside her kitchen and served him food with her
own hands.

(n)What was the difference in the attitudes of the science teacher and his wife towards A.P.J.
Abdul Kalam?
Though his science teacher was an orthodox Hindu, he broke the social barriers, and
mixed with other religions and communities. He invited Abdul home and served him
meals and even sat and ate with him. On the contrary, his wife was conservative and
refused to serve Abdul.

(o)How did Second World War give opportunity to Kalam to earn his first wages?
Kalam’s cousin was a newspaper distributor. Train halt at Rameshwaram station was
suspended during the Second World War. So, the newspapers were bundled up and
thrown out from a moving train. His cousin needed help to catch the bundles, so he
asked Kalam to help him and gave him money for the work done.

(p)How does Abdul Kalam describe his mother?
Abdul Kalam describes his mother by saying that she was an ideal wife and a gentle
lady. He learnt from his mother faith in goodness and deep kindness. She used to feed
a lot of outsiders every day.

Answer the following question with reference to context.

(a)During the annual Shri Sita Rama Kalyanam Ceremony, our family used to arrange boats
with a special platform for carrying idols of the Lord from the temple to the marriage site
situated in the middle of the pond called Rama Tirtha which was near our house.
i. What was the annual event held in Rameshwaram?
The annual event held in Rameshwaram was Shri Sita Rama Kalyanam Ceremony.
ii. Where did the boats carry the idols of the Lord?
The boats carried the idols of the Lord in the middle of the pond to the site of the
marriage ceremony.
iii. What light does the passage throw on speaker’s family?
The passage shows that the speaker’s family is a truly secular family which respected
other religions also.
iv. Find the word in the passage which means the same ‘the place where some event
takes place’
site

(b) After school, we went home and told our respective parents about the incident.
Lakshmana Sastry summoned the teacher, and in our presence, told the teacher that he
should not spread the poison of social inequality and communal intolerance in the minds of
innocent children.
i. What was the ‘incident’ referred to in the above extract?
When Kalam was in fifth standard a new teacher could not tolerate Kalam sitting next
to the son of a Hindu priest. He asked Abdul Kalam to sit on the back bench.
ii. What did Lakshmana Sastry ask the teacher to do?
He bluntly asked the teacher to either apologize or quit the school and the island.
iii. What brought about a change in the teacher?
Not only did the teacher regret his behaviour, but was ultimately reformed because
Lakshmana Sastry conveyed his opinion with a strong sense of conviction.
iv. Find the word/phrase in the passage which means ‘called for in one’s presence’.
summoned

(c)His wife watched us from behind the kitchen door. I wondered whether she had observed
any difference in the way I ate rice, drank water or cleaned the floor after the meal.
i. Who is referred to as ‘us’?
‘Us’ refers to Abdul Kalam and his science teacher.
ii. What were they doing?
The science teacher served food to Abdul Kalam and sat down beside him to eat.
iii. Why did the teacher’s wife watch them from behind the kitchen door?
She did not want to serve food to Abdul Kalam, who belonged to a different religion,
in her pure kitchen. As a result, she hid behind kitchen door and watched them.
iv. Find the antonym of the word- ‘similarity’
difference

(d)Once you decide to change the system, such problems have to be confronted”.
i. Who said these words to whom?
The science teacher, Sivasubramaniam Iyer said these words. to Abdul Kalam
ii. Which problem had to be confronted?
Iyer had invited Abdul Kalam for a meal to his place and his wife refused to serve
Abdul Kalam , who was from a different caste, in her ritually pure kitchen.
iii. Why did he say the above words?
Iyer asked Kalam to come for dinner again the next weekend. But Kalam was hesitant.
So, observing his hesitation, he told him not to get upset and spoke the above words.
iv. Which word in the extract means ’to deal with’?
confronted

Long Answer type questions

(a)Which incident took place at the Rameswaram Elementry School when a new teacher
came to the class?
Kalam used to wear a cap and Ramanandha Sastry wore a sacred thread which marked
him to be a Brahmin. When the new teacher came he could not tolerate the son of a
Hindu priest sitting with a Muslim boy. He ordered Kalam to go and sit on the back
bench. This made Ramanandha sad and left a lasting impression on Abdul. Both the
kids narrated the incident to their parents. As a result the Lakshmana Sastry
summoned the teacher and told him that he should not spread the poison of social
inequality and communal intolerance in the minds of innocent children. He asked the
teacher to apologise or quit the school and the island.

(b)How did Abdul Kalam earn his ‘first wages’? How did he feel at that time?

Kalam was only 8 years old when the second world war broke out in 1939. Then there was a great demand for tamarind seeds. Abdul used to collect those seeds and sell
them in the market. His cousin Shamsuddin distributed newspapers.
There was a suspension of the train halt at Rameshwaram station during the Second
World War. Hence newspapers for the Rameshwaram town had to be thrown out from
the moving train. Therefore, Kalam’s cousin needed help to catch the bundles. Abdul was employed by his cousin to collect them. This way he earned his first wages. He felt very proud on earning his first wage.

(c) “Once you decide to change the system, such problems have to be confronted.” Explain
with reference to the lesson ‘My Childhood’?
System here means system of discrimination on the basis of religion. The system
includes the narrowmindedness and poison of social inequality and communal
intolerance. Abdul Kalam’s science teacher – a rebel by nature, proved that if one is
determined to face problems and change the system, he will definitely succeed.
The Science teacher, Siva Subramaniam Iyer, wanted to break the social barriers
between the Hindus and the Muslims. He wanted Kalam to be very highly educated as
he recognized his intelligence. The science teacher, Siva subramania Iyer was an
orthodox Brahmin and had a very conservative wife.
One day, he invited him over to a meal. His orthodox wife was totally horrified at the
idea of a Muslim boy dining in her ritually pure kitchen. The teacher did not get angry
at his wife’s behaviour. Instead, he himself served food to Abdul. He also sat with him
and they dined together. The teacher invited him over again for another meal the
coming weekend
Though, such indifferences come in everybody’s life but a person should have a
broader outlook and overcome the obstacles.

Answers to text book questions.

Answer these questions in one or two sentences each.

1. Where was Abdul Kalam’s house?
Abdul Kalam’s house was on mosque street in Rameshwaram.

2. What do you think Dinamani is the name of? Give a reason for your answer.
The fact that Abdul Kalam used to read headlines, to know about the war and the
fact that his cousin was newspaper distributor indicate that Dinamani is the name of
a newspaper.

3. Who were Abdul Kalam’s school friends? What did they later become?
One of his friends Ramanadha Shastry became a priest in Rameshwaram,
Aravindam went into a business of tour operator and Shivaprakasan became a catering contractor with Southern Railways.

4. How did Abdul Kalam earn his first wages?
When there was a suspension of the train halt at Rameswaram, Abdul’s cousin asked
him for help in collecting newspaper bundles which were thrown from the moving
train. This task helped Abdul Kalam earn his first wages.

5. Had he earned any money before that? In what way?
Before the Second World War broke out, there was unusually huge demand of
tamarind seeds. Abdul Kalam used to collect tamarind seeds and used to sell them
for a princely some of one anna a day.

Answer each of these questions in a short paragraph in about 30 words.

1. i) Kalam’s father, Jainulabdeen was not a wealthy or educated person. However,
he was an honest and generous man, who possessed great innate wisdom. He
was self-disciplined and avoided all inessential luxuries.
(ii) Kalam’s mother, Ashiamma was an ideal helpmate to her husband. She
believed in goodness and profound kindness, and fed many people every day.

(iii) The author describes himself as a short boy with undistinguished looks, who

had a secure childhood. He is an honest and self-disciplined person, who
believes in goodness and deep kindness.
2. He says that he inherited honesty and self-discipline from his father. He further
says that he inherited faith in goodness and deep kindness from his mother.

PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Q1 Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.

(a) I filled the slot. Samsuddin helped me earn my first wages.
i. Who was Samsuddin and what did he do?
Samsuddin was Abdul Kalam’s cousin and he distributed newspapers.
ii. What slot was to be filled?
He wanted someone to catch bundles of newspapers thrown out from the
moving train.
iii. Why was there a need to fill the slot?
The train halt at Rameswaram station was suspended when emergency like state
was declared when India joined the Allied forces during the Second World War.
iv. Explain the meaning of the word-‘wages’
a fixed regular payment earned for work or services, typically paid on a daily or
weekly basis.

(b) “They come through you but not from you. You may give them your love but not your
thoughts.”
i. Who spoke the words and to whom?
Abdul Kalam’s father spoke these words to his wife.
ii. Why did he say these words?
He said the words to his wife because she was hesitant about Abdul going to
another town to study.
iii. Who does the speaker refer to as ‘they’? What does he say about ‘they’?
The speaker refers to the children as ‘they’. He says that the one’s children are
the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself. You can give them only your
love and they have their own thoughts.
iv. Give the meaning of the term ’thoughts’
ideas or opinions about something

Q2 Answer the following questions in 30-40 words each.

(a) Why does Abdul Kalam call his science teacher, Sivasubramania Iyer a rebel?
The small society of Rameswaram where Abdul Kalam lived was rigid in terms of
segregation of different social groups. The science teacher was an orthodox
brahmin with a very conservative wife yet he did his best to break social barriers
so that people from varying backgrounds could mingle easily.
He used to spend hours with Kalam and tell him that he wanted Kalam to
develop so that he was on par with the highly educated people of the cities.

(b) How did Abdul Kalam’s family practice social equality?
Abdul Kalam’s family arranged for a boat with a special platform for carrying the
idols of Lord Shri Sita Ram from the temple to the marriage site situated in the
middle of a pond called as Rama Tirtha. During the annual Shri Sita Ram
Kalayanam Ceremony. His mother and grandmother told stories from the
Ramayana and from the life of the prophet as bedtime stories to the children.

(c) Why did Abdul Kalam ask his father for permission to leave Rameswaram?
After the Second World War was over and India’s freedom was imminent. The
whole country was filled with optimism. Hence, Abdul Kalam asked his father for
permission to leave Rameshwaram and study at the district headquarters in
Ramanathapuram.

(d) What happened when Kalam was in fifth standard?
When Kalam was in fifth standard a new teacher could not tolerate Kalam sitting
next to the son of a Hindu priest. He asked Abdul Kalam to sit on the back bench
in accordance with the social as the new teacher saw it. Abdul Kalam felt very
sad and so did Ramanadha Sastry because Abdul Kalam used to always sit in the
front row with him. The image of Ramanadha Sastry weeping when he shifted to
the last row left a lasting impression on Abdul Kalam.

Q3 Answer the following questions in 100-150 words each.

(a) What do you know about A.P.J. Abdul Kalam’s family after reading the lesson ‘My
childhood’?
A.PJ. Abdul Kalam tells us that his family was a Tamil middle class family from
Rameshwaram. His father Jainulabdeen was not much educated, wasn’t rich but
was generous, wise, simple man but very strict and severe. His mother Ashiamma
was a generous lady, and used to feed unlimited numbers of people in their home. Kalam’s family respected all religions. They took part in Hindu festivals.
His mother and grandmother told the children of the family stories from
Ramayana along with stories from the life of Prophet. They always showered
their love on their children and never forced their thoughts on them.

(b) In the extract- ‘My Childhood’, The author speaks both of people who were very
orthodox in their belief of social standings and those who tried to bridge these
differences. Can you identify such people in the text?
The people, who were very aware of the social differences and followed them,
were the young teacher who joined the Rameshwaram elementary school and
came to teach Kalam’s class, the fifth standard. He couldn’t see Kalam seated
next to the son of a high priest and asked him to sit on the back bench.
The wife of Kalam’s science teacher refused to serve food to Kalam in her ritually
pure kitchen.
Those who tried to bridge these differences were Kalam’s science teacher
Sivasubramania Iyer who invited, served and dined with him to break social
barriers so that people could mingle easily; although his wife was horrified at the
thought.
Lakshmana Sastry who conveyed with a strong sense of conviction, his
disapproval of the new young teacher who did not let the son of the priest with
Kalam on the same bench in the front row.