A Mother's Will

As India’s rural education develops, it is making progress towards the educational needs of its children and future. One area that seems to be lagging behind in the rural segment is providing specific instruction and support for children with special needs. I know this area will garner more attention in the future, but at the present time, there seems to be a greater focus on other areas. Families are forced to cope as best they can to provide for their children if they do fall into this category, and I saw a most prevalent display recently of just such a commitment.

We have a student in the 4th standard at our school by the name of Nishal, and while he has the same twinkle in his eye as many of his fellow classmates, his body does not cooperate to allow him to keep up with them. Nishal has a developmental disorder that restricts his motor function, but it does not dampen his spirit for learning and enjoying life. I had seen his mother carrying him into school from the car, but not working specifically with the primary students, I did not have much interaction with his class. Recently, however, I was walking past a classroom, and I noticed him sitting there with his mother. It is the moment when you just want to stand there and smile because it is true love in action. His classmates had gone out for physical education class, and his mother was sitting next to him, gently holding his hand and helping him to write some words in Gujarati. He had a specially fitted pencil to enlarge the gripping area so that he did not have to close his hand tightly around a normal pencil. There was patience and love in her eyes as her hand guided his through the soft curves of each word.

This example underscores a larger issue with educational systems around the world- so many times, parents just want to plug children into the system and hope for the best. Special needs or not, our children require active parental involvement in their formative education. We don’t often get to see this role played out as dramatically, as in the example of Nishal- a mother’s love, sacrifice and determination willing her son to a better future and productive life. She does not ask herself- Why? I am sure that as she has tried to help him with his lessons, she has learned just as many lessons about life from him as well. Worrying and fretting are be of no benefit, as there are still more words to write, and only a son’s determination along with a mother’s will is going to accomplish the task.