NYSC PART 2: My place of primary assignment.

Hey guys!

Following my previous post, (Memorable moments of NYSC), one of the things I dreaded the most about NYSC asides the inevitable struggles and hustles involved in the entire process, was, having to find myself somewhere in a school setting, standing somewhere between a white or black board and a number of students/pupils, speaking or writing any form or type of language or solving any type of problems whatsoever.
Now, most people who know me would know that I have a passion for kids. I love kids, I love spending time with them, learning from them, watching them learn and watching them grow but thats about where that love ends. It does not extend to teaching in any way.
While at camp, I heard rumours that all corpers were mandated to teach except those who studied law or medicine and those who had the means (connects) of working out their postings to their desired PPA's. The Idea of school startled me as I fore saw karma coming for me. It all came as a flash before my eyes how we treated corpers back at secondary school, how we never took them seriously, constantly made fun of them and literally kept a book specially for noting down their grammatical errors. Most times, they would try to be nice and we'll take advantage and when they decided to be mean,  we ended up disliking them and making their stay gloomy. I knew I couldn't deal with that and since I studied biomed, I decided to work my way to a clinic, not just any clinic, but the National Assembly Clinic Abuja.

After I received my posting letter, I made plans and prepared my bank account for some 60-80K monthly salary plus little allowances and my standard 20k allowee summing up to about 80-90K per month. I had even strategised my monthly budgets and made a list of things I wanted to order by the end of the month. We were about 8 corpers posted there and we were given a date to hand in our letters. On getting there, it turned out they weren't even paying corpers. How on earth can a whole national assembly not pay corpers?? That must be a big joke!!. Sadly, it wasn't. We were encouraged to work regardless, and somehow, ''God will provide''. Indeed!!. 2 corp members left instantly and 5 decided to stay in hopes that they would change their minds. I didn't even have to struggle for my rejection. I was kindly rejected and I gladly took my rejection letter and ended up being reposted to a school (you know what they say about running away from your fears, you end up facing them sooner or later). Luckily for me, it was an American school meaning that it would be a total different environment for me.

Even though it wasn't a challenging environment with much experience, I felt very useful and also learned quite a lot especially from the kids. I worked at different departments ranging from the clinic to the science lab then the library to the reception and finally to the elementary school. I enjoyed all departments, but ironically, my best was having to teach as an assistant at the elementary school. 

Being an assistant teacher to the grade 1 kids was literally my best moments at my PPA. It reminded me how wonderful it felt being a child, how adventure was our only calling, how courage seemed never ending and how life seemed much more beautiful to us. What I didn't expect was that the kids I watched, taught me important things about life just as I was trying to teach them how to tie their shoes and read a book.

 Here are a few things I learned from the kids:

• EVERY DAY IS A NEW BEGINNING 

It always felt alluring watching the kids after every school day because to them, it felt so over, so final and so finished. The breaks between school terms felt like a lifetime to them because when you are young, every day feels like an afterlife and a new day means a new beginning, new friends, new opportunities, new lessons, new adventures, new life. Kids don't carry baggages from the previous day to the next. The always have a new beginning.

• ITS OKAY TO CRY

Kids are great at letting out those streams of tears. I had a couple of kids who always came to complain about being mistreated by their friends and how hurt they felt. I noticed that the kids were usually good at expressing their emotions especially if they were confused, hurt or scared and didn't know what to do. kids don't know if emotions are bad or if there are some that are worse than others, they just feel what they want to feel without reticence. And the best way to sort through any emotion is to accept it, feel it and let it before you shove it away.

• BE COURAGEOUS 

This is another great lesson I learned. Have you ever been late for something and a kid walks up to you and demands a reason as to why you were late, then eventually says ''you will be sorry if you show up late again''? well, those were the exact words I was told and that is what I would normally refer to as ''One with much guts'' I wish a little spanking was allowed lol. Kids feel limitless because they are not restrained by their fears of failure or humiliation. They match forward with so much courage, faith, hope and determination because they don't know any better. They embrace life and all it has to offer with open arms.

• BE ACTIVE.

"Play energizes and enlivens us. It eases our burdens. It renews our natural sense of optimism and opens us up to new possibilities." - Stuart Brown.

One thing my kids never joked with, was their play time. Recess was the highlight of every school day for them. They would run and chase their friends until they were out of breath and until their cheeks grew rosy.They would jump and do the monkey bars and they never thought of it as ''a daily fitness'' or ''an exercise'' it was just playing and it was fun!!.

• CHERISH FRIENDSHIPS.

Kids enjoy making new friends and they find joy in keeping them. They love going everywhere together, having the same things, having sleep overs, sharing secrets, sharing snacks, sharing money, sharing ideas and everything. They believe that the more the merrier and everyone is happy.

• NOTICE THE LITTLE THINGS.

"Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things." - Robert Brault.

My kids loved watching crawling creatures and beautiful butterflies fly around.  They notice their beautiful wings and how they fly. Simple things we take for granted, brings them boundless joy and deep inspirations. We fail to notice the tiny miracles and blessings that happen to us daily. Imagine how life would be much more beautiful if we notice and appreciate those tiny little blessings.

I loved and enjoyed my place of primary assignment and I was glad I was posted there. I would really miss the lovely and amazing staff I worked with especially the secretary Henrietta who always supported and corrected me each time I made mistakes and was literally like a friend I had known for long and also the lab scientist Mr Emanuel who was like a father, a mentor and an advisor to me. I would miss the delectable meals I always had for lunch, the unlimited internet access, the inter-cultural activities, the informal dress codes, the beautiful and calm environment and above all, My kids!!!..

Overall, Working in a school wasn't bad afterall. :-)