My Life So Far, Part 1

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I was born in a small village in a fruit Orchard.  Circumstances were pretty difficult but the quietness of the place allowed my wild imagination to flourish
I was a very curious child with never ending questions.  That kind of a child was not easy for people in a conventional little place.  By the time I was six, I kept a lot to myself, relying on keen observation and whatever reading material I could get my hands on
I was able to read by the age of four by “borrowing” my sister's school books when she was not watching.  By the time I managed to get to school, I was ahead of all the kids. Which was a very fortunate thing! I had no shoes, wore patched up school uniform, had no school books and had no money to buy snacks or pay school fees.  
Rumours were circulating that the headmaster had gambling addiction issues.  I was asked to teach class whenever he was missing. My “payment” was being allowed to roam the book cupboards at the back of the six classrooms.  By the time I was eleven, I had finished reading all available books. Lucky for me, the assistant head teacher was a bachelor. He asked me to do chores in his school quarters and the reward was being allowed to read his books.
After elementary school, I was given an opportunity to study at a boarding school.  The school sent a list of requirements. I gathered whatever cloth scraps I could find, and sewed together three dresses.  Since I was the first girl to venture out of the village, gossips were loud and rather painful.
The social interactions in my boarding school were too intense for me.  I was very grateful for the library. It was a quiet shelter, even though initially I could not read the books.  My English was non-existent. With the help of dictionaries, I started Enid Blyton. At the peak of my obsession, I read thirteen books a week. My home was the library.  Starting from Enid Blyton, my reading went up to Khalil Gibran, Bertrand Russell, Rumi and the British poets.

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