A Heartwarming Tale

We had a woman come into the office today.  I was braced for her complaints, when she started to tell us a story.  She said there’s a girl at our school named Comfort…but she didn’t know her age or surname.  Melinda said, “Yes…Saforo…she’s in JHS2” (which is about 13-years-old).  The lady replied, “Yeah…she’s the one.  I pass by her sometimes on my way home and give her a ride.  Yesterday, I asked how she was doing, and she started to cry.  She explained that she was getting pressure from school to pay her school fees, but her uncle was the one who paid them (her father died before she was born) and he didn’t have the money.  She didn’t know what to do because she knew she’d have to drop out of school if they didn’t come up with the money.”  Well…this woman went on to explain to us that she was a single mother of three, and didn’t have any extra money herself, but she wanted to know how much Comfort owed so that she could pay her fees for her.  We explained that the school fees are 555 Ghana cedi and the lunch fees are 200 Ghana cedi.  So she paid 500 today and said she’ll return next week with 100 more and the following week with the rest.  Can you believe it?!  She hardly even knows this girl!  Talk about a Good Samaritan…I just didn’t even know how to respond!  I told her she’d be so blessed, but what words can explain gratitude or admiration enough for generosity and love like that?!

I want to dedicate today’s entry to the wonderful kids I met in Mrs. Permenter’s class in Kansas City.  As I was writing this, I thought about two things.  One was the kindness that you showed to a complete stranger - me.  You guys were so welcoming and friendly…I seriously LOVED the time I got to spend with you!  And I’m SO sad I didn’t get the chance to say good-bye to most of you…but hopefully I’ll be back = )  But if I don’t get to see you again…know that you’re a freakin’ awesome group of kids = )  The second thing was how lucky we are in America to receive a free education.  I know many of you wish you didn’t have to be in school, but there are people all over the world who would give anything to be in your place, because they know that an education would be a ticket out for them - a ticket out of poverty, of hunger, of back-breaking work.  So when you’re in school, try to think of it as your ticket.  You’re at a train station and you’re watching all the trains pass through, deciding which one you want to ride on.  If you don’t graduate from high school, that ticket will only let you ride a couple of trains, and they’re probably not going to where you want to go.  With your diploma your ticket will let you ride a couple more, with an associate’s degree a couple more, with your bachelor’s a couple more - and so on and so forth, with each degree expanding your choices of where you want to go, what you want to do, who you want to be.  Hope you guys have a great rest of the year, be thankful for what you have, and know that you’re incredible! (Oh…and treat Mrs. Permenter well! = )