My Beginnings Lesson Summary and Explanation in English Class 9th

Introduction

“My beginnings” is an autobiography of the Indian former cricketer, Kapil Dev, who recalls all his past memories and concludes that the beginnings never know their ends. Kapil Dev’s beginning started in Chandigarh, a small town nestling in the foothills of the Himalayas.

It was cold winter morning when the legend took birth on 6th of January 1959. He grew up among six brothers and sisters all older than him except one sister, who was a year younger. Kapil exposes his personal ambition and curiosity of travelling around the world and driving a Mercedes Benz. Though he fulfilled his dreams later on in his life, but he says that the same dream seemed to be impossible twenty five years ago.

Right from the beginning, it was very difficult for Kapil Dev to sit still which ultimately made his mother unable to control him. Kapil Dev then talks about his childhood and says that he led a very frisky childhood while he was in school like bunking school,saving money so as to watch a movie or have a plate of chicken chowmein with his friends,breaking the fruit off hisneighbour’s tree etc.

The Neighbour’s Garden

He then recalls his neighbour’s garden which was very beautiful and had papaya and pomegranate trees in it. He used to spend most of his time in wondering how to get into his neighbour’s gardenand pick the sweet fruits off the trees. One day he along with his one friend entered silently into the garden and perched on the papaya tree but unfortunately his neighbour along with few guests sat right under the same papaya tree due to which he had to wait for two hours till their tea party ended.

That was for the first time he experienced rashes on his skin. The next day Kapil’s neighbour, the owner of the garden, had to leave for Delhi. Her garden then had ninety-two pomegranates on the tree, which she counted daily out of insecurity. Behind her back, Kapil Dev along with his friend ate half of the pomegranates and distributed the rest.

After returning home the lady immediately complained Kapil’s mother about his breaking and entering into the garden and the theft of her ninety- two pomegranates due to which Kapil had to get scolding from his mother.

The Childhood

Another instance of his childhood naughty behaviour we get to know is when Kapil Dev informs that how he and his friends tried to ride the police horses which used to graze in a huge open green area. Despite the countless falls and fear, he ended up in learning to ride a horse. One day he decided to take the horse to his home and house it in their back garden which was about seven hundred square feet in size.

It was difficult for him to adjust the horse through the tiny five and a half foot by two-foot door way. Within minutes of their arrival,he and his friends were caught. The horse was thus duly returned but his father’s criticism completely discouraged his venturing near the grazing fields.

In his childhood,Kapil Dev was not so studious and hard working as he spent much of his time playing games. Though he began to play football, basketball, table tennis and hockey but his friends always urged him to try his luck in the field of cricket. He is really overwhelmed to recall that because of his friends he played the game of cricket as he did not know that it was the game for which he was actually made.

It was how he began spending more of his time in playing cricket and naturally he played in a number of inter school tournaments and came to be noticed as ‘promise lad’ in the local press. At last, he gladly says that how cricket led him to become a professional player.