K Siva Segara

Learnt recently from my schoolmates that we have lost yet another teacher. Siva Segara joined Penang Free School's teaching staff in 1964 and was our Form Teacher in 1968. From a career in teaching, he went on to a profession in Law and eventually opened his own legal firm in Kuala Lumpur. He had been a lawyer since 24 October 1973, and he had left Penang Free School soon after teaching us. Question: Did our antics in class finally convinced him that the way forward was to change his career? Or was it the realisation of a long-burning ambition for him?

Anyway two nights ago, I was asked to contribute to a small memorial booklet which his daughter was preparing. After thinking for a while, I decided to write this tribute: "When my friends and I were at Penang Free School in 1968, Mr Siva Segera was our Form Teacher. His subject was Mathematics. But in a sub-conscious way, he taught us perseverance as well. There's this memory of him that he could draw incredibly huge, round circles on the blackboard. Starting from a point at the bottom of the board, a smooth circular motion of his arm was all it took him to complete the circle and end up near the start point. Of course, it was not always a success but he persevered and would try again when the next Maths question demanded a circle. So rest well in peace, my old teacher, your former pupils remember you."