USC Dana and David Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

I really love morning assembly at Dilkhush, so I thought I’d share the rundown. Every morning, the principal begins the assembly with a prayer followed by a song thanking God for everything He/She has given us (remember, India is a polytheistic country and we have gods and goddesses!

After that, one student is selected from the entire school to recite a poem at the head of the hall. Being selected is a big deal for the kids, so they get really excited! And there’s no jealousy among the other students. Instead, they’ll pat their friend on the back and give them high fives for being selected – so sweet! “The chosen one” recites the poem line by line, and everyone else repeats. It goes a little something like this:

India is my country.
All Indians are my brothers and sisters.
I love my country,
And I am proud of its rich and varied heritage.
I shall always try to be worthy of it.
I shall give my parents, teachers, and all elders respect,
And treat everyone with courtesy.
To my country and my people, I pledge my devotion.
In India’s well-being and prosperity alone lies my happiness.

After that, everyone sings the Indian national anthem together called “Jana Gana Mana.” The anthem is beautiful and so spirited that it sets the tone for the morning. All the kids join in and sport smiles while singing it. The little ones still mistake it for a fun folk song, so some of them will break out into bhangra (a lively, fun dance native to Punjab in India) while we sing the anthem! Hahaha. I’m super proud to say that I can now sing the anthem in my sleep. Before coming to India, I knew only the first two lines, but that has all changed now : )

Once the anthem is over, we do yoga and exercises and then break for class. The big kids help the little ones get to class, while the little ones try to ditch the big kids. Anything to avoid class…the little ones are down!!