Imagine This!

In today's society, everyone around us, adults and children, are busy maintaining their hectic routines with barely any time to breathe or unwind. Being all too worried about results, we tend to forget to invest time in ourselves and to allow our children to become their own people.

Forget everything you know about the perfect school. Faiza Faria Ahmed, the owner of Manas and Studio Green, brings you a school with no allocated space dedicated to self-exploration and to de-stressing.

Abelardo, The School of Imagination, is a safe space for children to relieve the stress of daily expectations which their young minds are having to internalise. With no outcome oriented incentive, the school hosts sessions once or twice a month to allow children to get creative and to detach themselves from the monotonous academic centred life.

Now-a-days, we tend to associate every activity with a particular outcome. This mentality comes into play more during parent-child relationships where the mental grooming of the children often remain unattended. But this school preaches otherwise and focuses on creative growth.

Difficult to imagine such a school, right?

If you think this is a place for only children to let loose, you would not be entirely correct. The school also provides talk-sessions for adults who might need a place to detach themselves from the capitalist society and get back in touch with nature.

Ahmed believes that even with an intention to relax in a coffee shop, one can never truly be at ease because of the hustling environment. Even with friends, we are unconsciously holding ourselves back and thinking about the collective comfort rather than ourselves.

"This is a place for kids to mess around and an open space for adults to relax,'' says Ahmed.

She provides a space for adults to talk about anything and everything. Those who do not wish to share are more than welcome to join in and listen to what others have to share.

But if you expect to be entertained with music and snacks, you would be disappointed. The non-profit school utilises every penny into renting a proper space and ensuring safety for everyone.

The word "Abelardo" means breathe and this is exactly what Faiza Faria is preaching; for all of us, to take a break and breathe, to get back in touch with ourselves and nature.

Abelardo, The School of Imagination, is the closest institution the city has to offer as an answer to the western idea of summer camp. A place to unwind and engage in recreational activities with no performance expectations.

For further information about their future events, check out their Facebook page at- www.facebook.com/abelardoschool/

However, take notice not to mistake their page as inactive. They make sure to create the chill environment both digitally and physically.

Photo courtesy: Abelardo, The School of Imagination