Friday, December 27, 2013

ONE PENCIL

Reaksa was a daughter of impoverished farmers; she was 8 years old and learnt at Grade 3. Reaksa had only two sets of clothes, one of which was old while the other was new, bought by her parents for her replacement to school. Because of her small house, her father, Sok, made a room with cloth and wooden cabinet for her school materials. In every early morning, her father always got up to water their crops, whereas her mother helped her to read texts as much as possible.

One day after the school hours, Reaksa picked up a pencil found on the way to her house. Noticing that her daughter had a happy facial expression, her mother asked, "Reaksa, do you get top scores?" Reaksa replied, "I have got good scores like before." Her mother asked, "Why are you so strange?" Reaksa responded, "I got a pencil along the way". The mother was very concerned that her daughter secretly took the pencil from her classmate. Her mother, Phai, tried to console her daughter to unveil the truth even though she had known that her daughter had never told her a lie.

In the next morning, her mother prepared porridge and grilled fishes as usually did for her daughter before she left for school. She spoke to her daughter that "Reaksa, I want to go to school with you today." Reaksa responded smilingly that, "Mum, do you get me to school like my friend's mothers did? I see other children having their mothers or relatives accompany them to school every day. Today, I am so lucky." Her mother said, "Last night, I could not sleep because of the pencil." Hearing such concern, she agreed with her mother.

Along the ways, Reaksa talked with her of a range of matters and greeted elderly people they met. Then the school's bell range as a sign for paying respect to the national flag. Reaksa join the team in queue singing the national anthem. Because of her vivid memory of the song, her teacher selected her as part of the team. After the national flag ceremony ended, students dispersed to attend their respective classrooms. Reaksa moved to her mother and led her to her classroom.

Auntie Phal raised her hand in respect to the female teacher who also raised her hand in response. Antie Phal told the teacher of the case that her daughter picked up an unclaimed pencil. The teacher understood the matter, and called her students to come in the class. Then all the students stood up to greet the teacher and Auntie Phal.

The teacher called Reaksa to approach her and said, "Please, give me the pencil you picked up." The teacher then asked her students in the classroom, "Anyone has lost a pencil?" An eldest, fat and teasingly, Vireak, stood up hurriedly. "Have you lost a pencil, Vireak?" the teacher asked him. "Yes, I have," Vireak responded. The teacher further asked “Where have you lost it?" "I kept it in my baggage," answered Vireak. Vireak's answer made Auntie Phal feel angry with Reaksa.

The teacher noticed unusual facial expression of Auntie Phal, and further asked, "Vireak, what color is your pencil?" "My pencil is red with stripes and my mum just bought it for me," replied Vireak. Hearing Vireak's answer, Auntie Phal feel relaxed as the pencil was red without stripes. Knowing characteristics of Vireak, the teacher warned him that, "You must not want to claim other people's possessions because I knew that you have adequate school materials." The teacher added firmly, "If you continued such an act, I will call your parents to ask here." Hearing so, Vireak felt so afraid that he hurried to eventually seek his teacher and other classmate's pardons, pledging that he would no longer do such an act.

Failing to identify owner of the pencil in her effort, the teacher decides to render the pencil to Reaksa. The teacher said to her, “You can take it for use and try to learn better." Thank you, teacher,” Reaksa responded. The teacher said to Antie Phal, “Reaksa is a polite and quick learner. I appreciate you for your child upbringing though your family's living standard is low.”

Reaksa had tried her best to follow her teacher's and parents' advices ever since. Reaksa had used the pencil till completion of her Grade 3. At then, the pencil was so short that she could hardly write with it.

After the examination, the results showed Reaksa got very good scores. The doctor felt very excited unexpectedly. She took her baggage of which she got her own pencil to give Reaksa and asked for her short pencil in return. Seeing so, Vireak, who had two rulers, gave one of them to Reaksa. While some of her other classmates gave pencils, rubbers and crayons in motivation to happy Reaksa, who was regarded by the teacher as a model student in terms of her study an morality.

“Disappointment is the nurse of wisdom”

- The END -

No comments:

Post a Comment