Mentor

After a not so warm reception by our lecturer for our lack of participation and intelligence, the sight of my former professor on the same bus to Las Pinas was refreshing. I would not have noticed her had it not been for a girl who got off leaving a vacant seat for me to sit on. My professor must have been tired after a long day at the university; she looked as if she had a shuteye on the bus. I greeted her as soon as I took my seat. She wiped her eyes responding to my greeting.

"How are you?" She was motherly as always.

I dominated the whole conversation during the one-hour commute. I couldn't stop from blabbering; she was very encouraging and she appeared as if she was really listening.

I talked about my new work where she replied with sincerity, "How great! I am happy for you!"

I still consider myself a teacher, and hearing that from a fellow teacher, especially from someone whom I respect and admire, I was in heaven. I think she was actually proud of me. My former insecure self always wanted an affirmation of sorts from my former teachers. I guess, this time, I got it. It feels great to see my teacher take joy in my small achievement. Her smile said it all.You see this teacher of mine is considered a pillar in our department. Mrs Mendiola she is called. She is brilliant and well-liked. A PhD holder in Linguistics, US-trained and an achiever in her own right, she was looked up to by many. She is my mentor although she doesn't know it yet. She will always have my highest admiration.

I will probably not take teaching as a career right now, but if I decide to do so, I will be like her. She once wrote in her profile that she will only stop teaching if her students don't want her to. I guess she will have more years teaching because there will always be a demand for her. But I would also understand if she decides to retire. She leaves daily for work at 4:30 am she says. She even told me that she injured herself after tripping on a road construction; there was no light nor warning device that early that day, yet she went to work. She goes home taking the public bus by herself, and she's not getting any younger.

Bus terminal in Las Pinas

I got off feeling proud, but it was her "Ingat ka, iho!" that made me forget of all the bad teachers I had had.