Well, it's been quite a long time since I last made an entry into my blog. Life has been busy and there are indeed so much work to be done. BUt, I do not think I can continue with my work without expressing my heart-felt gratititude to my students. You see, yesterday, was graduation day.
It was with mixed feelings that I sent them off. These two years was tough for me. In my teaching career, I have never find it so difficult. My personal life was a mess and it affected me in a lot of ways. But God still sees me through it all. As I read some of the notes that my students gave me, I cannot help but tears welled up in my eyes. Yes, it was a journey, one that is filled with sadness and sweetness. It was with pride that I saw each and every one of them grow. My journey was made a lot easier by them. Perhaps, God placed them in my life at this juncture to encourage me as much as I want to encourage them.
It was particularly heart warming when I read one of the notes given by my student. He said he was glad that I am laughing again. Indeed. My usual cheerful self is slowly coming back. I can feel it too. Maybe, it is due to the fact that I can start looking forward to the day when I can close this chapter of my life. My wife has finally set the date for a divorce. If God does not turn her heart back by Jan 2008, it would be over for us. In my heart, I know it is over unless God chooses to change her heart.
This will always be a bad chapter in my life but it is also one of the best. In it, I see the hand of God with me, leading and guiding me. Just like a kind shepherd who leads his sheep through the valley of the shadow of death. These students, my friends and many others have help me much through this journey. I learnt a lot in this chapter. Forgiveness and the ability to see beyond my circumstances are my two most important lessons:
Will you forgive your loved one who betrayed you? I used to think it is definitely easy to do so. However, when I personally learnt that my wife has been cohabiting with another man, I am faced with this challenge of forgiving her. It was not easy, trust me. But I did. Forgiveness comes when you look beyond the person and the act to the source of that agony - Love. It pains us when our loved ones hurt us. It was not an easy lesson to learn.
The ability to see beyond the circumstances and that God is in it through it all, is something that my students have given me these two years. In the same way, I hope I have encouraged them as well to look beyond the present. YOu may be feeling tired and anxious about the O Levels but remember... it is just an exam and it will come to past no matter what.
Do your best! Look at those things that will motivate you. Friendship and Love are some of the precious things that we can hold on to in such times. Encourage others and you find yourself comforted. By looking at others and not focused on ourselves, we see the Grace of God in all these things.
So, take care my students. Thanks for being there. I love teaching you all and all of you once again, help me to affirm why I join teaching in the first place. Thank you. All the best in your studies!
