Thoughts of appreciation toward the school teacher and the counselor, translated…
I didn’t have a good and harmonious family of origin, my parents argued endlessly about money, to the point, that they’d started, pointing to and blaming me, who was way too young back then, treated me as the culprit of what made their marriage fail, as they had, married, because my mother got pregnant with me; as an only daughter, I had nobody ELSE I can talk to, and I can only, hid out in my own bedroom, and cried my tears in the silence, which led to me, becoming a loner as I got older.
In my high school years, I went to an all-girls’ institution, not knowing how to dress up, my classmates bullied me, it’d made me want to commit suicide even more; after I got through those high school years, and managed, to squeeze through the narrow pass of entrance exams, I’d gotten into a highly-acclaimed institution, but my self-esteem still wasn’t built up, I wasn’t happy at all, still felt, that there was no purpose to my life, always accompanied myself alone, nor did I want to involve myself in the extracurricular activities, felt that nobody in the world can and will ever understand me, just hung out in the libraries, read my favorite books, but the thoughts of suicide was never far away.
At a class gathering meal, my primary instructor, Mrs. Liu seemed to have noticed my isolationism, she’d used the excuse of wanting to discuss my final paper, asked me to come to her office. Mrs. Liu was quiet, and gentle, she’d pointed out how I can revise my paper, to make it better, and told me where I can send my writings to after I’d revised my work. I felt that shocking sensation, as it was, the very first time, that someone actually took, a genuine interest in my wellbeing, then, she’d pulled out the flyer of the counseling center at school, encouraged me to get involved in the functions that they had offered.
At the same time that I took the flyer from her, I felt displeased, felt that I was more than normal, that I didn’t need ANY counseling at all, was my professor treating me as a nutcase? Mrs. Liu seemed to have gotten the message, she’d slowly told me of her similar experiences as she’d gone abroad, of how she was pressed by both raising her child, and attaining her degree, how she’d become an insomniac, and was diagnosed with mild depression too, in the end, she’d relied on the help of professionals, to guide her out of the darkness of the valley of her own life.
In order to get Mrs. Liu to read through my revised report, I’d gone to the function unwillingly. And, I didn’t expect that the activities to be so interesting, the counselor, Sister Tseng used an active and lively way, to help us understand which emotions we were experiencing, how to deal with it, when we feel negative and when those negative thoughts started surfacing, it’d opened the entrance toward my intrigue with psychology, I’d started getting actively involved in the activities hosted by the counseling center; through understanding myself, I’d, slowly, let go of my grayed thoughts, learned to interact with people, and in the process, I’d found the goals of my own life too.
Now, my work entails dealing with people every single day, and from time to time, I’m asked to give speeches, this, was something that I’d never imagined me to do when I was younger. Every time I saw news of the young lives lost on the news, I was always reminded of my own pessimistic beliefs, how back then, I couldn’t find a way out; without the cares and concerns of my instructor, Mrs. Liu, as well as the guidance from my counselor, Tseng, I can’t imagine, where I’d be right now. Recalling how back then, when I took that first step into the counseling center, I saw a passage on the papers, “Sometimes, some simple kindness can give those in need, the light; sometimes, giving ourselves a pull, is the pathway to change.” I kept this to heart.
And so, this, is all due to the kindness of your professor, she’d noticed how you weren’t happy, and showed cares and concerns toward you, gave you a pull when you’d needed, and your instructor showed you the emotional support you’d needed, and so did your school counselor.
