When we say or hear the word “HERO”, kids and even adults
usually imagine or think about these super hero characters that have super
powers. Fictional characters that can fly, read your minds, have super
strength, or can make waters move or fire up some lasers through their hands.
It’s time to face the reality and come back down to our real world, who are our
heroes?
There are actually a number of recognized heroes in this
world, we just don’t talk about them that much like these fictional characters.
We have our national hero, or the ordinary people who was able to save our life
in a situation that will take some great courage and no, they don’t have super
strength nor they can’t fly or ran fast, it’s only their heart and mind that
they’re using to be able to do such heroic thing.
One of these people (for me) are the teachers. Really, I can’t
imagine our world without the teachers, if we’re all selfish enough that we don’t
like to share our knowledge to someone who we are not even related with, to a
kid or a teenager who’s not even yours and talks back at you, to these people who
wants to have what you know so that they would also know.
Yes, they’re paid but most of the teachers here in the
Philippines are still in need of more income. Why? For there are situations
where they have to provide chalks, paper, and other tools for them to be able
to teach well to their students – this usually happening in the public schools.
So still, though they’re earning their money still goes to their students.
Another thing that I can’t and don’t want to do is that, to
still work beyond working hours. At work, I’m even watching the time to
complete to 8 hours and I’m …WOOOOSH!... gone! I’m so excited to go out and go
home to sleep or eat, relax and do my thing. But the teachers, they need to
prepare their lessons for tomorrow, make quizzes, exams, submit reports,
student grades, etc.
Also, I can’t imagine myself handling more than 3 kids – I can’t
even take my 3 nieces longer with me how much more if we’re not related? The
classrooms in the public school are usually full of students, probably around
50 kids in one class and one (1) teacher is handling and teaching them all.
Kids with different families, different attitudes, manners, learning speed,
needs and attention to give, I’m going crazy just imagining it and how much
more if I’m in that situation.
I’ve recently got in contact with my previous teachers and
most of them would say they miss me. I’m not sure if I’m the teacher’s
favorite, it’s just that I was CUTE (that’s what they say - *vomit*) back then
and they all want to hug me, kiss me, tease me and now… I just wish instead of
the teachers doing it, it would be the boys – LOL. Just kidding!
So to let you see and know more why I think too that the
teachers are heroes, here’s an infographic I found online that tells you how
hard it is to be in the field of teaching. Though the status below is the US,
the point is still there.
Today is actually the Philippines TEACHER’S DAY, so I would
like to dedicate this post to all my teachers (including college instructors)
who I believe contributed a lot to who I am now as a person, as a professional
and a citizen of this country.
Let me share with everyone today the teacher’s that I can
still remember that also have helped me to who I am today, and they are:
TEACHER PERLITA
Kinder 1
She’s my first teacher that’s why I can remember her and she’s
the first, she’s the one convinced me that I am actually a girl. Yeah! Yeah! I
thought I was a boy just like my brother. I even asked my Mom back then why I
have different ahhhh…. Down there (you know, down below!) comparing to my
brother (because I saw them peeing outside with my cousin – who’s also a boy).
My brother was my baby sitter, he was the one playing with
me and taking care of me if he’s not at school since he’s the oldest. So yes, I
was close to him and then I thought I was a boy. I don’t like talking about
this because some people think I’m a lesbian – but really I’m not. - that
someone (a girl) actually kissed me and see what’s my reaction and I was like “EWWW…YAK!”.
I may look like one or act like one but I prefer hunting and dating boys –
sorry girls! LOL.
So thanks to Teacher Perlita (I don’t know her last name)
for talking to me back then because I’m early over to gender crisis (haha..) at
a very early age.
TEACHER ANNE
Grade 3
I think she’s already about 37 today and still not married.
That’s how she’s serious about teaching, and I actually asked her I think last
year why she’s not yet married and she said she just want to wait and enjoy her
single life.
Teacher Anne is very good in English, it’s because of her I started
loving to write though I know some grammar and sentence construction is not
correct but hey! At least I tried. Also, after talking to her after almost 15
years she was able to realize that we should just enjoy our single life. If you
meet a guy today, get married tomorrow, why not right? She said that because
when you’re married you can’t think of yourself anymore, you have a partner and
you’ll have kids, and you will prioritize them than yourself so where’s the
fun? After all the hard work, working almost 24/7 you don’t get anything out of
it?
It was a matter of timing when we get to talk because at
that time I was like “am I that ugly?”, I see my friends with boyfriends, my
classmates getting married, my other classmates getting pregnant even without
getting married. Some people even ask why I don’t have a boyfriend yet, I just
usually say “none have yet mistakenly landed on me.”
So if it wasn't for teacher Anne, I may not be a blogger now - so there will be no Exotic Philippines, in short - and probably I'm one of those girls who got married early to a man I don't know much or probably pregnant by a guy who was there during ON THE MAKING and when the product (baby) is there they magically disappears. So yes, that's why I am not in a hurry to be in a relationship because I'm just enjoying and grabbing the opportunity to be selfish (LOL). So that by the time I get married (I hope so), there's no regrets.
TEACHER DAWN
Substitute Teacher – Grade 5 /Owner of the School
I’m still in contact with her and I’m not even
sure if she knows me or remembers me. She was a substitute for our MUSIC
lessons for about a month (I think) but with that span of time she marked a
huge part of me and I believe to my classmates too – we are all excited and
geared up when it’s her subject already.
She’s the one who let us watch the movie “THE
SOUND OF MUSIC” of Julie Andrews. It’s an old movie but still works magically.
Up to now I still remember the songs, the story though we just watched it once.
Since then I started to love music and then I became a fan of the Spice Girls
then well, of course Britney Spears and up to now.
MA’AM JANET
College
Since day 1, I’ve already admired her. She’s calm,
smart and teach very well. If she’s on the board, she will have my attention
because i know if I listen to her I will learn something priceless. If it was
not for her, I wouldn’t have that interest, motivation and perseverance in
learning programming. Yes, she’s our computer programming language instructor
and I would say she’s pretty awesome!
I’ve heard before that Ma’am Janet talked to someone
about choosing another field to study because she can see – and even I can tell
– that this student does not have that much of interest, knowledge and skills
in proceeding the course that the student took. Though I know this might be
hurtful for a student to hear, but it’s the truth and it’s good that there’s
someone who can give an advice that we need to stop and think on trying other
things. Rather than spending years in a degree that in the end we’ll just fail.
For me, that’s a great thing to do by a teacher. She’s earning from that
student but she choose to give an honest opinion and advice so that the student
will be able to finish its studies well and work on something that she’ll be more
successful at.
On my last semester, I have that moment where I’ve
done what I need to do but I get nowhere, I keep on failing and falling again
and again. I lost hope, they see me go down, my friends talked me out of it and
cheer me up, encourage me to stand up again because they believe on me and what
I can do. They see talent and skills in me in the field of programming that I
can’t even see. So one time Ma’am Janet come to me and sat right beside me – on
the floor – and said “What’s wrong Gay?
What happened to you?”. I was speechless at first and want to cry because “someone
cares!” I just told her that I was having a hard time and all, so she talked to
me and said “let me see your paper so I
could check what I can do.”
If Britney Spears is the person I look up to in
music, it’s Ma’am Janet who I look up to in programming. For someone like her
to help me out, I felt like I can die tomorrow. LOL. But really, she did help
me and told me not to stop – because I was planning to stop there and
surrender. She told me not to quit, I need some few adjustments, few work to be
done and a mindset and I’m good to go. She even offered that she’ll be the one
to schedule my defense to my instructor so that I would really make it to the
defense and do my best.
In short, if it was not for her and of course my
friends, I will not be able to have the degree that I have now, I would have
failed my parents and myself. For someone who can say and tell me if I can do it or not, it's flattering that I could cry knowing that she believes that I can do it, that she can see that I have the power to end the fight and win in the end.
It's not that I didn't enjoy or that teachers hates me during high school, it was just that I was trying to make a distance between my advisers in high school because my siblings was under them too and I'm pressured of the expectations that I'll be like them - top of the class. But there was this adviser in high school that she liked me a lot, she liked me a lot that she wants me to be her brother's girlfriend. But her brother was shy and I'm not that into having relationships back then - study first! So nothing happened, we don't even get to talk because my adviser is already making a quiet giggle in the corner when her brother sat beside me.
Anyway, I think this post is too long already and
hopefully I was able to share with everyone how important and how these
teachers can help all of us, and how for me they become a hero.
To my teachers, advisers and instructors thank you
for marking a part of my life, for the help, inspiration and unconditional love
that you’ve shared with us, for the patience, support and care. May more people
be more like you who could change the world through doing ordinary and
heartfelt things.
To all the teachers in the Philippines and around
the world, I in behalf of all the students would like to say thank you and have a wonderful life and a very happy teacher’s day!
P.S.
You might also like to read my blog post dedicated to teachers on my other blog:
A Teacher’s Guide to Social Media
Photo credit: Anna Fischer
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