I have been working at a Taiwanese at-risk youth center for almost two years now. I love working with these kids not because I think that I am changing their lives but because all of them don't act as if their lives are terrible. They don't play the pity card.
I teach these kids English and they work hard. Well most of them do. Some of them have given up on learning the language and attend the class because all their friends are in the class. I have gotten to know each of them and if you only just met them in school you would think they were just regular kids.
They are regular kids. They listen to hip-hop, they dance, the scream, they trash-talk, they love their friendships and they love McDonalds. But some of them shoulder more responsibility than some 30 year olds I know. Some have had to deal with things far beyond their emotional capacity and yet they manage. I love these kids and as some have come and gone and new kids have showed up seemingly out of the blue, I dread the day that will be my last with many of them.
There is one new girl. Her name is Whitney. She looks no bigger than a six year old but she is actually eight. She carries this enormous backpack and has a cell phone for emergencies. She is new to my English class and to the center. She is shy and quiet, but smart and quick. Her English ability is better than half of my class and yet she constantly demeans herself and lacks any self-confidence.
Since we started the new semester two weeks ago, I have been walking her half-way home. I enjoy this time with her. I get to know her outside of the classroom and I also get to make sure she gets home safe, at least part of the way.
I found out she has a little sister that is five years old that stays at home. When I asked her who watches her little sister, she didn't have an answer. She doesn't know what kind of work her parents do and she never knows when they come home or leave the house. She goes to school by herself, goes to the youth center when its open after school, and then takes the public bus to as close as home as possible and walks the rest of the way.
The center closes at 8 pm and after a 10 minute bus ride, she has to walk about 15 minutes to get home. I walk with her about 5 minutes of the way but the rest of the way she is on her own. I can't help but feel a tightness in my throat whenever we go our separate ways. I offer to go with her but she refuses.
She is a responsible, smart, disciplined young girl. With no sense of a clear upbringing I cant help but wonder where this sense of responsibility comes from. Perhaps it comes from the lack of responsibility at home or the necessity to care for her little sister when she is home.
Whatever the reasons I admire her. I hope that I can be the best teacher for her because she along with all the other kids I work with, are the best kids I know.
Please lift them up in your prayers when you remember.
