Motherless boys

             As I was taking a rest from my very tiring work one afternoon, two kids came to me and greeted me,"hi Teacher!" 

I told them, "oh! I am taking a rest boys, why are you here?" 

They both said, "we just dropped by Teacher to say hi!" "So what are you doing?" one boy asked? 

"I am writing the grades on the report card." 

I asked them, "so what about you both, did you pass for the next grade?" 

One boy said. "only him," pointing the other boy, "but I didn't." 

"Oh, I see, you were always absent in the class that is why. 

May I ask why you were always absent?" 

"Teacher, my aunt always tells me to be absent. Whenever I dress up for school, she would tell me to look after the internet cafe because no one will watch it. And if I will not watch it, I will not have fare." 

"What a stupid reason that is for your aunt to say?" I said. 

"How about you?" I asked the other child. "I stopped going to school after the Christmas party because we had nothing to eat. I had to look for things to sell."

" But where are your parents?" I asked. 

"My mother is in Saudi Arabia, and my father died when I was small." The other boy said his mother is in Saudi too. 

"Do you have a husband teacher? "Ohhhh, I said what a question"? I said "yes" and the other boy followed the question with, "how many husband do you have teacher? "I almost have gotten angry, but I realized I was talking to Muslim students whose tradition is quite complicated and I told him, "I only have one, but unfortunately I am now husbandless because we have separated." 

The boys were so inquisitive, very eager to talk with me with real feelings. One of the boy said, 

"When you were a child teacher, were you happy?" I said, "yes, I was. I had my mother and father and my brothers and sisters. I was the youngest that is why. How about you?" "I am not happy teacher," and "so am I" said the two boys. I asked why? They said they are suffering from poverty. They couldn't concentrate on studies because they had to work and look for things to sell in order to eat. "Your mothers are in Saudi, are they not sending you support?" "They don't even call us teacher. My mother got married again in Saudi," the boy who asked me how many husbands I have, said. The other boy said, "my mother also got married there."

"Oh, so sad to hear! I am sorry!" I said. The boys asked me, "do you have children Teacher?" I said, "yes I do." I am sure they are so happy because you are with them" one of the boys said. "Oh, yes, I believe so they are." And he added, "do you send them to school?" "Of course, they have to study and be in school always." 

"So lucky of your kids teacher, I wish our mothers also will send us to school like you do so that we can have good jobs when we grow up!" My heart beat faster and I asked, "what would you like to be when you grow up, "I would like to be a teacher, or a computer technician." "Oh sure you can be a teacher because you are good and intelligent." "I wish I can study and fulfill my dreams." 

That was a very touching revelation, a very simple conversation yet gave me a great impact. I felt so sad that there are parents like theirs who went to work in other countries for the reason that they had to give their families great lives, but it was actually the opposite for these boys. Children's lives are too precious, their youth spells the future. 

I wonder how these mothers live their lives. I stayed away from my children for about 3 months, and there was no night that I was not crying. Until I found out that my son was not treated well, when his hands were twisted by his own dad whenever he cried looking for me, I almost have jumped. I would cross the ocean to have them with me. With the boys' revelation, I wanted to reach their moms and tell them to remember their child who they have left just in other person's care. Their kids who need their warmth and their loving arms and words.

Parents really differ from each other. There are those that only care for what they feel, for what they want and like. There are those who only care about money more than the relationship. They do not deserve to be called parents at all.