Alam The Teacher

Working with a renowned institution, I visit the school library every day. I preferred visiting the school library over others, because not only does the school have the best collection of books but also because of its location. The school building is located at the foot of a hill, receiving the full force of winds as it sweeps across the hills from the east, the library has its huge windows opening to the rare side to view a beautiful big garden with plenty of huge Banyan, Peepal, Neem, and Ashoka green trees and soft black soil, fertile for red Roses, yellow Lily, purple Verbena, white Carnations and a variety of flowers. Seated amidst nature's bounty, I read news, articles, and new books on socio-economic and political events happening nationally and internationally, I also read books on pedagogy, with the objective of educating my class children to the best of their and my abilities. And it happened so that it had been over three months now I had been reading a book called "Child Development" by Elizabeth Hurlock.

Every time I went into the Library I had to enter my name and details into a register. To do this there used to be a young boy, called Alam, who helped me do it. Alam was an intern working in the Library, he would also help me find books. Over three I had been visiting the library and I had almost completed reading 3/4 of the book, the book was very enticing. It explained development theories and practices to enhance the social, intellectual, emotional, physical, communication, and behavioral skills of a child. The book was an enchantment for me. It had elaborate details of how a child talks, walks, sits, stands, plays, reads, writes, thinks, and how the same could be molded through games to develop skills in the child to the optimum

One day I didn't feel like reading, I thought of taking a break and walked towards the school garden, while I strolled through the breezy garden, looking at the plants and flowers. I saw Alam smiling and walking towards me. He came and said "Hello Mam, we meet every day in the Library but I don't know your name," I told him my name and he told me his. He asked me about my whereabouts and asked him about the same. Alam must have been around 21 years old or less. I found that he was very curious about the world, ambitious, and had international. I asked what he wanted to do after he would have graduated from University.

Alam was an Indonesian student studying at Pune University, who wanted to write a thesis on a comparative study of cultures of India and Indonesia. I made a straight question to Alam, I asked "how many years would you take to learn English, as I knew, Alam knew only "Bhasa" and then “how many years would it take to learn the culture of India and Indonesia and when would you finish all this, get a job, earn experience and then finally have money in your hands?”

Alam was quick in his reply saying "Well I don't aim to get high paid jobs or assignments" I said "Agreed, money is not everything to you but maybe a requirement of somebody else, say with passing days, you may have parents to support and your children who may want to become be doctors and going to medical colleges, all cost's a lot"

He had an answer, the answer was not something that belonged to our casual conversation but was premeditated, he said: " like any other parents I would have aspirations for my children and I have some, I will build a house by a small riverside surrounded by mountains, it would be a classroom with nature as the teacher and I will ingrain values in my children". My name is Alam and it means Mother Nature.

 Our conversation closed there. I closed it, I required no further explanation, and his answer left me thinking. Being pulled in different directions, in routine daily life, making things work, in different roles and responsibilities, achieving targets, we seem to have slowly drifted away from the basics of being Human. Probably we require to regain poise. I thought whether it was my prime duty to take time and teach values to my class children or to sharpen their brains to make intelligent professionals? I concluded I could do both, train my little ones to grow up to be intelligent and simultaneously have a serving heart, loving and caring for others, to be socially responsible.

Finally I today I have finished reading the last page of "Child Development". Looking for a book on how to teach Value Education to children, I looked around for Alam, to help me find a book on Value Education. Alam had given me his number. I called Alam to find out where he was. Alam was no more working with the library. He had finished his internship and had traveled back to Indonesia