ALL IN ONE

We do not always get what we want, but it does not really matter as long as we get what we need. I have known this since I was young because my parents were not the type of parents who give in to their children’s demands. They have kept us grounded, even if we have always have had enough to have more than what we get. There were times when I had wanted to question their ways, but the more they set the budget and talk to us about saving for the future, the more we realize that we really should make ourselves ready for bigger things in the future. In reality, my parents chose (still choose) to be practical rather than be spoilers when it comes to handling our finances and therefore our future.

My siblings and I attended public schools based solely on my father’s belief that if someone can really excel in his studies, he can do it no matter which school he is enrolled at. Fortunately, though we were victims of ‘Does that school even exist?’question in college, we outperformed in more ways than our parents had even imagined. All of us have completed college degrees and have respectable professions now; our parents can’t be prouder. But then, our pride and success is mainly because they have made their part in providing us with the best education possible. I am not saying this because I am a product of public schools, but because I have been equipped well from the training I had from where I graduated. My academic groundwork went beyond the books; it was shared with social practices and exposure to diverse cultures and had given me a perspective about the ways and means of life that I now employ to succeed in my chosen vocation: teaching.

When I was young, I was asked what I wanted to be. At first, I wanted to be a doctor, or a lawyer, or a police officer – but later on, I realized that all the other dreams somehow would not happen if there were no teachers around. And so, I chose to become an educator. I do this for the realization of my dream to touch lives and inspire them to be better. In a way, I have become a doctor because I save lives from ignorance. When I mediate instead of mitigating, I become the lawyer that I wanted to be. And when I stand between students pitted against each other, I become my dream police officer. So, in essence, being a teacher is like being everyone else rolled into one. It is a one-size-fits-all kind of job, and it is gratifying!

— oOo—

The author is Teacher III at Sinura Elementary School, Porac East District