I talked to my long time friend and colleague on the phone last week. It was not the regular “hi-hello-goodbye-what’s-new-wuzzup” kind of call that we usually had. It was a tough conversation that was so hard to for me to digest. It was the most devastating news that I ever received so far from home. And it was indeed a faith-shaking moment that I can’t believe I was having at that particular moment.
My friend is also my former co-teacher.
And true to her profession… she taught me something that I know I will cherish for as long as I live.
She is a year younger than me but has been a teacher long before I joined the profession. When I was still new in that school and finding my way into the system, she taught me a lot of things that helped me survived the crucial stage of the “teachingdom”. She provided me not only with some special materials she personally made to facilitate teaching strategies but effective secret tools to help me deal with the unforeseen troubles that my young students might play on me. If you know what I mean!
She is more than a teacher. She takes care of her students like her own children [she has 2] when they are not in the classroom and treats them “business-as-usual” when in the classroom. She plays and she works with them. She laughs and cries with them when called for. She is a friend and a mother to all of them. She is a mentor of the young hearts.
She is one of the toughest teachers I have ever known. She is firm and full of conviction. She fights for what she believes in. She is ready to gnaw anybody down just to prove her points. And she is ready to exchange blows if her conviction is challenged by deception.
But she is not just a teacher who teaches. She is not just a friend who listens. She is not just a mother who cares. She is not just a mentor who molds. Neither is she a tough person who fights for what is right. She is a person of unwavering faith.
Teaching is not all about the students. Teaching is about the teacher too. My friend taught me the real meaning of miracle. She has lung cancer. Her body maybe fragile at this moment but her spirit isn’t. She must have doubts whether she will see her kids graduate from college or get married and have children of their own but she never doubts her trust in God. She may not be strong enough to fight this toughest battle she is facing now but her faith is strong enough to fight for her.
I miss my friend. It’s so tough that we don’t talk or see each other more often than we used to but we both know that our friendship will remain the same.
My friend is my teacher. She taught me life lessons that will help me go through life with the same conviction that she has. But more importantly she taught me to appreciate life better and showed me a new way to see life in a different light… in a different way… in a whole new perspective.
Faith in God is a marvelous thing–it can get you through anything!
@ Karen… yes, Karen I believe so. Faith gives us the strength we need to live life to the fullest. Thanks for your comment.
hi ruthi
your friend reminds me of my favorite story in the bible, Job
very inspiring
thanks!
@ Sterndal… Yeah it’s true… she is such an inspiration to people who lost hope.
your blog was touching. She is lucky to have you as her friend and you are lucky to have her.
@Carrie… thanks for visiting. Yes, I am so lucky to have her as my friend… she gives me strength.
Dear Ruthi,
I find your post inspiring. It is so important to have a mentor, especially one as strong as yours. It is so important to find a friend in your mentor, one who will help you unconditionally. I am also teaching and I sometimes feel the need to ask for advice and not having someone to turn to can prove to be difficult to handle.
Best of luck in the new school year!
Geeky Geekerson
@Geeky… thanks for you kind words. I appreciate it. Yes, being a mentor is great but having a mentor as a friend is a gift.
When it regards to advice… in this modern age… and if you into blogging… it’s easy because based on my experience there are a lot of faceless people all over the world who are willing to give a helping hand… include me in your list. Take care.
i was saddened with her passing away too. nina had been so good to my children back in H.S. especially with rossinie. she has been a friend to me too.i remember the last time we were able to talk..she was so concern on how my children will be in the future, and how they were that time we talked.i never thought she wud suffer with cancer bcoz even though i knew she was sickly, she was full of enthusiasm and she was a happy person. im sad that someone like her is now gone. her memories will remain on us. may she rest in peace with our lord. ur article about her touched my heart. ur very effective.
@Rosini… I know, I still can’t believe that she is gone. She is a great loss to the school where we both taught and to the students who should have learned so much from her. And yet, I am happy that she finally will have peace with the Greatest Teacher of all.
[...] My dear friend and colleague finally lost her battle to lung cancer. She finally flanked all the tests that the doctors gave her but she did pass the greatest test of her life – her unwavering faith in God. Until the end, she held tight to that faith. Until the end, she struggled to keep her faith. And until the end she kept her faith alive in everyone whose lives she had touched. She taught us to have faith. [...]
Tita Ruthi,
very touching po . iyak ng iyak din po si mommy weng . alam ko pong isa sya sa mga tumutulong lage kay mommy lalo na sa pag muv on sa pag kawala ni dady . napakabaet po ni tita nina . lage po xang redi to help . we will always include her in our prayers .
@Lee Ann… Thank you for reading my blog… I know what your mom went through too and I know how your Tita Nina helped out and supported her. She is indeed a great loss to everyone of us. You take care.