Most volunteers tutors would most probably be able to relate this: a mad rush in the traffic through the peak hours, jamming through your way with an empty dinner-less stomach, while intense stress surmounts with a million things on your mind; that latest email, the project deadlines, all occupying your thoughts as you make your way to your volunteer assignment.
A couple of times, I had thought of giving up volunteering because it was just so mentally and physically tiring. “But I won't and I can't!” I soon find myself telling myself, because I have made a promise to the kids that I will see them through their school work till the end. Soon, I find myself at the entrance of Gracehaven and tuition commences, amidst the jokes, questions, chatter and even the occasional tantrums – but it is all worth it.
The kids will always be kids to me: the teenage boy, who craves knowledge that his eyes light up when he sees me bringing the latest newspapers and news magazines; another boy, who started off with me with an air of defiance but yet who draws the most beautiful and creative pictures of hands; the girl, who always looks forward to my lessons with a smile that illuminates her face the minute she walks into the room and shouts “Lao Shi!”. All of them, and more, are my students and my friends. And to a certain extent, they are also my guiding light who teaches me the humility of life. "
Ariel Chen Jiaxin
Volunteer Tutor
Gracehaven
