Tuesday afternoon dated March 9 this year, I was so tired because it was so hot and I really wanted to go and find a place to hide. I chose to join the class consisting 60 students with two teachers in one of the villages. The class started exactly 2pm and every student is very much willing to listen to their teachers. It was funny hearing them singing “I’m a little teapot” and “the ABC song.” We open this new village two weeks ago.
I was just at the table sitting checking the handwriting of the students and exactly 3:15 pm a child came in. He was late of more than an hour. The towel on his head intrigued me. I told him, “Come here.” I wanted to ask him why he was late. The boy hesitates to come near me. Yet he does not have a choice but to come. Then with fear and shocked I made a high pitch of saying “Teacher R. it’s blood” the blood flowed from his head I do not know which part of the head but all I know it came from there. Terrified of what to do next, having fear of what had happened to the child before he came to school. Pictures of violence came across my mind.
After seeing the fear in me, the child ran away. I called him out to come back but he never listened instead he ran and ran in fear. Fear of thinking I will be angry with him and scolded him (which I will not do even in my wildest imagination, as a teacher all I wanted was to bring him to the nearest clinic). Therefore, I take over the class and told teacher “R” to go and run after the child. I was in mixed emotions seeing the blood and being worried of the child as well while continuing teacher “R”s class.
15 minutes had pass by and teacher “R” came without even a hint of a child but a piece of towel wherein I saw on the head of a child earlier. I felt terrified asking myself what happened to him. I asked Teacher “R” what happened and he told me the child ran inside the other village so he was not able to catch him. I told “R” please look for the child. I was more terrified when teacher “R” told me that the child came from a construction near to the khampung to work before going to school.
The father of the child a year ago was caught and deported back to Philippines and they did not see him again. I heard from T “R” that he married another woman in the said country. . Only the child’s mom worked hard for them to live. They are six siblings. What happened to the child was while he was moving the lumber to a certain place another lumber with 4 nails struck his head. I closed my eyes thinking of the child and I was so afraid of the tetanus that will possibly cause.
No one saw the child for an hour. Until our class ends and exactly 4pm. It was a lesson for the entire teacher to check your students every time they were late or absent because the parents believe that they went to school yet they do not. The class attendance is very important. After the class, we saw the child in the store. The blood was already stopped they put oil on it. The thing was it was just an exaggeration saying, “it was a nail that struck on the child’s head.”It was not! Instead, a lumber that passes through his head and caused small wound that leads to bleed. However, together with the teachers, we waited for his mom to tell the story, but the mother came late in the evening. Therefore, I cannot wait much because it is too dark and my place is a bit far. All I did was I instructed the teachers to wait and explain to the mother everything that had happened and I told them that any chill or fever the child will have just call me or sms me. I waited overnight for their call. Thank God, they did not. It only means everything went well anyhow. Next afternoon, I saw the child in school. He was not late and very clever to answer the questions as if nothing happened to him. Indeed, it was amazing.
This year, one mother takes initiative to start a small literacy center at her small house. The house was built in a swamp area were kangkong plants and cobras lives.
When we went to pay them a visit, around 40 children sitting on the floor, try to write the ABC. As I looked around to observed, I smiled when I saw that the ABC was all over written at their wall made of plywood. At the outside of the house, we also notice that the neighborhood wall has also ABC. I smiled to see how persistent they are to learn, even though the resources are not sufficient.
Last month, Goducate at the same place was able to rent a bigger house with a bigger space compare to their first classroom. The 40 children was happily and proud to transfer to that house with their free bag of school supplies that GODUCATE also provide.
