For you a thousand times over

Loyalty is a beautiful thing. It is not easy to find a faithful friend.

As I put down the book (The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini), the image of Hassan running tirelessly through the alleys of the neighbourhood, in search of a blue kite, continues to play in my mind. He has promised Amir that he would bring it back to him and Hassan, against all odds, has stayed true to his word. Not even the threats and attacks by a bunch of neighbourhood bullies could stop Hassan from fulfilling his ���mission���.

But it stopped Amir from being a loyal friend. When Hassan was not back after many hours have passed, Amir, like a good friend, went to look for Hassan. An anxious Amir saw a merchant nearby and asked if he happened to see Hassan. When Amir was asked how he was related to Hassan, the very words that Amir uttered pained me. ���He���s our servant���s son���. Nothing more. It was a friendship Hassan would pay any cost to protect; but it was one Amir, in the darker recesses of his heart, was ashamed of.

Amir finally found Hassan in one of the alleys being attacked by a bunch of neighbourhood kids. Amir could choose between ���step [ping] into the valley��� to ���stand up for Hassan��� or running and in so doing, leave Hassan in a lurch. He ran.

In the days that follow, Amir was guilt-striken. In a bid to rid himself of these feelings of guilt each time he sees Hassan, he resorted to planting a watch and some money under Hassan���s pillow. That way, Hassan had to leave his house. Standing in-front of Amir���s father, Hassan willingly admitted to all the accusations he had never committed. And Amir understood that that was ���Hassan���s final sacrifice for me [him].���

It is in the dark that light shines brighter. It is through Amir���s betrayal that Hassan���s unwavering loyalty becomes all the more apparent.

Teachers

Paint their minds
and guide their thoughts
Share their achievements
and advise their faults

Inspire a love
of knowledge and truth
As you light the path
Which leads our youth

For our future brightens
with each lesson you teach
Each smile you lengthen
Each goal you help reach

For the dawn of each poet
each philosopher and king
Begins with a teacher
and the wisdom they bring

Kevin William Huff

Freedom Writers

The inner-city students whom Erin Gruwell is teaching spared little thought for her feelings when they pointed out in her face, matter-of-factly, that they were unable to trust her: she is white; they are not.

By virtue of this fact, she is separated from the many traumatic experiences that they have to deal with, even as adolescents. And because the whites have contributed much to the hardships and sufferings of the blacks, the students found it impossible to respect her. Coming to school with all sorts of problems and emotional baggage, getting these hard-core students to be engaged in the learning process was an insurmountable task.

To aggravate matters, Erin Gruwell receives little or virtually no support from her superiors, colleagues and husband. Her attempts to go the extra mile for her students are often, frowned upon.

Fast forward the story to the very last scene, however, we see her students anxiously waiting for her arrival. Upon announcing that she is finally permitted to follow them up to High School, her students erupt into loud cheers. What a beautiful scene!

���What happened in between so that the kids are eventually won over?��� you may ask. The transformation is only possible, I would say, because Erin Gruwell is not just an educator, but a teacher to her kids. As a teacher, she is genuinely interested to understand what her students are going through and what they need (a game to get to know them and later on, buying journals for them to pen down their experiences and thoughts, inviting guest speakers to give talks she feels her students can identify with); respects them (promises to flip through the journal to make sure they have written but not read the content unless they wanted her to); and above all, she does not allow her external environment/circumstances to constrain her. She is able to transcend her environment and stays true to her calling to teach and make a social change. Because the kids are blessed with a teacher (as opposed to an educator), the classroom is no longer a place where they study for content knowledge with little relevance to the students��� lives. It has become one which truly matters.