I am filled with joy, the warm kind of joy that makes one pleased with life. For a split second, I even wished that this Movement Control Order will go on (I know, I know, MCO causes a lot of upheaval to people’s lives and livelihood, don’t berate me, the wish was just for a split second).
So what was the reason for my joy and the insane wish? I finally succeeded in contacting some of the students from one of my weaker Form 5 classes and forming a WhatsApp group with them. This is the platform that I am
using to give them work to do during this MCO. I had earlier formed groups with all my other classes, but this class was elusive, uncontactable.
And to my utter surprise, the handful of students in this group were extremely responsive and welcomed the online work given. Some even sent private messages to ask further questions regarding the work I had given. I honestly did not have high expectations of them because I usually encountered their disinterested faces in school. In fact, this is the only class that I entered with a heavy heart this year. Very often, I had to BEG them to learn and do some work.
Suddenly, there was an incoming private message. It was from one of the girls. This girl had never shown the slightest interest in my lessons and was 99% of the time fast asleep whenever I entered class. She would usually cover herself with a jacket and “melt” into the table, trying to continue with her sleep. I would walk to her, throw open her jacket and plead with her to wake up. Today she surprised me with her message, “ 老师想学英文。不过我英文最基本的都不会 因为我之前没听课。” Translated, it means “Teacher, I wish to learn English. However, I have not even mastered the basic lessons because I had never paid attention in class.”
Her honest plea really touched my heart. And it made me happy that this girl, whom I had tried hard to reach out to, had actually taken a baby step to reach out to me today. My heart sang!
I was replying this girl as well as her other classmates’ messages, back and forth. Hence, I’m writing this post a little later than usual. But it was all so worth it.
And what did we have for dinner today?
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| Braised pork belly and eggs in soya sauce (“tau yew bak”) |
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| Stir-fried lady’s fingers |
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