Theme: Deserving, understanding, helping

A special class

Mrs. Valerie was a teacher at a humble school in a small town in the countryside.

She was a strict educator who always demanded discipline and dedication from her students. But she was also quite thoughtful. She cared about each child, gave advice, encouraged them to be good people.

One of Mrs. Valerie's best students was William, a studious and hardworking boy. His family lived in a ranch far from the school.

To go to school, William had to leave home early, and, on his bicycle, he would ride a few kilometers to get there.

On the way back, he rode again, sometimes under the hot sun, sometimes in the rain. But he didn't care. He liked to study and learn.

One day during class, while explaining the subject, Mrs. Valerie noticed that William was not paying attention. Leaning over the table, his head resting on his hand, he had his eyes far away and his eyelids drooping.

- Guys let's pay attention! I'm explaining something important - said the teacher.

William straightened in his chair and looked hard at Mrs. Valerie, who spoke again. But it didn't take long and the boy was in the same situation again.

Mrs. Valerie called him by name and asked him to improve his posture and his attention, and William struggled for a few minutes to get it. However, as soon as the teacher turned to write on the board, William laid his head on his arms resting on the table and fell asleep.

Mrs. Valerie, when she turned to the class, saw the boy sleeping in her class and called again:

- William! Lift up your head! We are in the middle of class!

The boy didn't even move. He didn't even hear that she called him. He was sleeping deeply.

- What is going on, William? This is no place to sleep - said the teacher firmly, willing to wake him up.

- Wait, Mrs. Vale! - Octavio said, suddenly, preventing the teacher from continuing - William is very tired! He can't take it!

Octavio was one of William's best friends and told the teacher that the boy's father was sick and, therefore, all week William was doing all the work on the farm alone. William had been waking up at dawn to milk the cows before going to school. When he returned home, until evening, he worked a lot and still did his homework, before going to sleep. That's why he was so tired.

The teacher listened, thought for a moment, and then told the students:

- The right time to help someone is when he is in need. William is not sleeping because of laziness or indiscipline, on the contrary, he is tired because he is working a lot, helping his father. He never missed classes. He is working hard and deserves our help. Let's let our friend rest and continue the class. I'm going to write today's story on the board. I want you to copy and we'll get back to the explanation in the next class.

The teacher filled the whiteboard and the children, in silence, copied it.

Mrs. Valerie took his notebook from his backpack and she herself also copied the article from the blackboard.

When she rang the bell at the end of class, William woke up in embarrassment and shifted in his chair. One of his colleagues started to laugh and was about to make fun of him, when he received a scolding look from Mrs. Valerie and stopped talking.

The teacher didn't comment anything, neither did her colleagues. Everyone pretended that they didn't notice anything so as not to embarrass the boy.

Mrs. Valerie ended the class saying that the class was to be congratulated, as they were great students and as they were advanced with the subject, she would not give homework for the weekend.

- Rest, play and enjoy the time with useful things! Good weekend for all! See you Monday! - she said.

The happy children took their things and left.

William came last. He put his things away, got up and, embarrassed, apologized to Mrs. Valerie, thinking he was going to get an earful.

- Come here, my son - she said, hugging him. - Octavio told me you're helping your father, who's sick. Whoever helps deserves to be helped too! It's all right.

The two didn't notice, but the kids weren't gone. They kept spying on the living room door and the window.

That day, the students learned more than the school subject. They had had a special class, a practice on earning, understanding, and helping.

Translation:
Larissa Martine - larissa_am@hotmail.com

marcelapradacontato@gmail.com