This is a re-print from our archives. First published on May 11, 2012.
As Mother’s Day approaches, I think of my role as a mother and as an educator. Yes, mothers are the first educators of our children. We teach them to walk, teach them manners, how to be kind; we teach them of themselves and of the world around them. We hope and pray that our lessons stick and that as they make their way past our hands, that the lessons we taught them germinate and grow as they develop into the fine adults we want them to be.
I not only think of my only child who as I write this, is weeks away from completing her first year in college, but I also think of the daughter of a friend as we visited a college together a year ago, on a sunny day in Chicago. And I think of my goddaughter, who is about to receive her college diploma on Saturday, the day before Mother’s Day. I will be in the audience along side her mother, releasing tears of joy – I had a hand in teaching her lessons on standing up to adversity and on managing money.
But there are other children on my mind and in my heart. I did not give birth to them but they are mine none the less. You see, I was blessed with the opportunity to pass on lessons from afar. I was offered a special role to help young Haitian students strengthen their use of the English language through the Le Flambeau Foundation . I shared bits of my life’s lessons through conversations using the written word. As they improved, my mother’s pride grew bigger. With every accomplishment, I felt great joy.
The students I worked with from Haiti have become more than students. I studied the warm and welcoming faces in the pictures they posted when introducing themselves. I admired their strength and determination. In my heart, I’ve hugged them when they wrote of things that brought them joy and wrote of things that brought them sorrow.
There was a small lump in my throat at the end of each semester as we signed off. Always, a mother’s question looms in the background. Did they understand what I wanted them to know? When they go out into the world, will they pull from their memory lessons learned and have fun? Did I do enough? I pray so.
So to my dear friend and to my dear sisters in Haiti, the mothers of those beautiful children who were first taught by you with love, devotion and great care; Merci, Merci – for sharing your precious gifts with me. May each one shine brightly and continue on the wonderful path of life-long learning. Because, every day, is Mother’s Day.
Contributed by Mrs. Deborah Fallahay who served as the educational adviser and grader for Haiti students in the Spark of Le Flambeau exchange program for three years. Mrs. Fallahay, an assistant director for the graduate program at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, sets aside her personal time to make a difference in the lives of youth in Haiti, and the difference is being made. We forever appreciate her selfless contributions that continues to gift many for years to come.
Le Flambeau Foundation , Inc.