Our Gurus for life
It is not just our school teachers but our parents and the many others who’ve taught us a thing or two about life and living.
IT IS said that behind every successful man, is a woman. What if we were to ask who is behind every successful student? That would be a difficult one for there is not one, but many teachers.
These teachers may not necessarily be your cikgus from primary and secondary school, but could also be your mentors, trainers and counsellors from programmes and activities you attend.
Also, let’s not forget our parents, who are our best teachers as it is through them that we learn much about life, morals and values. As for myself, would I be what I am today if not for teachers like Miss Lim, my Form Four English teacher?
At 16, while I fought shy of my talents, she unearthed them and honed them to perfection.
Would I have been able to speak and enunciate my words as well if I hadn’t had teachers like Miss Ponniah who taught me English in Form Two? She was a stickler for everything and once made my whole class pronounce the word “little” many times to make sure the second “l” in the word resounded even in the corridors! Now, when someone pronounces the word as “liter”, I actually cringe.
Would I have loved Biology as much if I hadn’t had Mr Soosai and Mr Sham Singh who loved the subject so much that it inspired me?
I can still remember how Mr Sham Singh sought perfection expecting explanation, articulation and elucidation of facts in Biology essays. Is that why I expect the same standards from my students now?
Old-world values
Many of us are meticulous today because we were taught by a generation of teachers who wouldn’t let us get away with substandard work. They set the bar high with no reservations. Would I have grown up with the values of self-discipline, perseverance and resilience if my father hadn’t exacted them from me?
He was harsh and unrelenting, but he meant well when he made my sisters and I participate in every single competition held at the local gurdwara (Sikh temple).
We had to get up at the crack of dawn to understand the meaning of true sewa (service) and remember God in all that we did. “Do your best,” my father would say “and God will do the rest”.
Faith and gratitude
To this day, I still get up at the crack of dawn and I still see God in all that I do. Gratitude is the highest form of prayer and I feel eternally grateful to my father, the teacher who truly shaped my will. With a will, I have always found the way.
It is from my mother that I learnt to cook a complete meal. It is from her that I learnt about humility.
She was a woman who dedicated herself to hard work and had no qualms talking even to the dustman.
Today, I see a part of her in me when I greet the street sweeper or talk to the school gardener.
Would I have been able to think as analytically and be so well-adjusted if I hadn’t been married to a man who made decisions with his head and loved me? I still find myself learning from him.
Would I have known how to love unconditionally and with total acceptance, if I hadn’t had daughters to test and question the terms of my love constantly from the time they were born?
They are still my guides to fashion, music, entertainment, the world of tweets and staying “cool” and connected.
Would I have been as grateful if I hadn’t had a mother-in-law who related to me stories of women of her era and the many trials and tribulations they had to undergo as compared to women of my time?
She was a giving person who valued all that was handed to her and made me do the same.
Would I know as much as I do today if I hadn’t been willing to be tutored by the many good books and magazines I read over the years?
Would I have been as peaceful if I hadn’t learned from introspection and the intelligence of a higher consciousness to reject the call of materialism and money?
Would I have been so giving if I hadn’t
I have learnt a lot from all the obstructions that arose from both internal and external frustrations and the small-minded people who have stood in my way.
been moved by parents wantingg the best for their children, or the gratitude of those whose children had only education going for them?
I ask myself if I could be understanding and kind if I hadn’t experienced pain and struggle in my life?
Benjamin Franklin once wrote that “what obstructs, instructs”.
I have learnt a lot from all the obstructions that arose from both internal and external frustrations and the small-minded people who have stood in my way.
Looking back, I’m glad I had them in my life.
Thanks to them, I learnt to grow stronger in the face of adversity and contention.
Finally, would I have been a good teacher if I had chosen not to listen to my students — my best teachers of all?
They spurred me, motivated me, talked to me, shared their lives with me, looked up to me and made me a better person.
I thank them for their willingness to open up their minds and hearts to me and for teaching me the true value and meaning of the two-way street.
Only by taking the trouble to know them did I know and realise my true potential as their teacher.
Teachers really matter and good teaching, in whatever form it takes, does make a difference.
In my journey, I learnt most when I was a learner first, and a teacher second.
Teachers celebrated their big day on Wednesday, but it is still not too late to wish them.
Happy Teachers Day!