My Double Trouble- Vol. II( I never knew Love)

I was reading through an e-book in a borrowed Kindle Paper White and my thoughts suddenly went to my two sleeping daughters’ right beside me. I remembered parts of this poem and I still had difficulty tracking down the poet.  I read it on Facebook some years ago. After hours of browsing I finally came to the name Maurice Yvonne. It was like a wild goose chase in the internet. This poem best describes my love for my daughters. Some of the lines are of my own. With due respect to the poet...

Azhim 2

Azhim 1 

 

For every tear you shed from hurt

physical or emotional

For every tear you shed from shame

rightly or wrongly

My loves

my heart sheds a beat

I never knew love

 Azhims with Mom

Until I knew you

I love you both

from my tippy toes

to the peak

of my silver threads

Don't hurt my dears

But when you do

I will hold you tight

Encase your fears

Minimize the pain

And when my heart bleeds

or slightly feels a crack

It's because my daughters

your lives before mine.

I love you so much girls...

What and How...

This is an update of a different kind. I was registering myself for a program on the RIGSS website. For those of you who do not know what RIGSS is, its Royal Institute for Governance and strategic Studies. After the registration I was given a question to answer in 500-700 words. The system gives me two hours to answer this question in not more than 700 words. By the time I had done answering I still had 1 hour 29 minutes left. Thanks to my blogging experience. I don’t know if I have done justice with my reasoning but here it’s just for your reading pleasure.

Question: What can the education system do to make our youth develop into productive, responsible and efficient citizens of the future?

Thank you for the questions and I am elated to the extreme that I get the opportunity to answer to a question that relates to my professional life. Well, being a teacher means constantly engaging myself in thoughts that would make my pupils an educated and efficient citizens of the future. To cut short and delve into the question there are several factors and reasons that affect our youth in making them capable, responsible and educated citizens of Bhutan. Firstly,

1. Curriculum
As of now our curriculum is such that we invite people from the west who we consider 'consultants' and these consultants invite educationists from all school system in Bhutan, conduct a month long conference and then decide what is best for the children of Bhutan. We should be in a position to decide and maintain what is good for our own children not that an alien from the west decides what is suitable and best for the children of Bhutan. This is what has happened exactly to the English curriculum as a teacher myself. Children learn of all sorts of modern and contemporary literature forgetting the greatness of the classics. Thank god that from next year, English teachers like me can breathe a sigh of relief that the Bard, William Shakespeare will be introduced into English curriculum. Children learn from the knowledge of the past and to have a strong solid foundation in English language and literature. This is the very first step in making our youth capable of speaking and writing acceptable and correct English with confidence. Curriculum of the present should be reformed to suit the Bhutanese youth so as to make them proud, responsible and educated citizens of tomorrow, considering the confidence and English capability of some of our graduates today. 

2. System Support
Teachers all over Bhutan, even as I write this feel that there is very little support from the ministry and the RCSC. In the due course of educating and grooming our youth today, some teachers fall prey to abuse, criticisms and insults to the extreme of resigning from the Teachership. Some exceptional youth (Good as well as bad) make this happen to the teachers. In morality terms, who speaks about  good?  Even one's ultimate boss sees only the weaknesses in an employee. And for the good that one does for all these years, it's just a passing breeze commenting, "You are paid to do that". Teachers  walk the extra mile to make our youth very productive and efficient sometimes at the expense of one's personal family time only to be remarked on ones absentees from the school and the bad that you were involved years ago. If a teacher fights and raises some voice for the betterment of the youth in schools today, this move has to be in the good books of firstly the principal boss and several bosses above him or her. The current system of bureaucracy in the ministry of education particularly is so hassle-some that the teacher loses the motivation to work and perform. For those who made a mistake in a typical school, there are hordes of individuals and agencies right up to the ministry that this teacher must answer to but for those teachers who make the schools and youth proud, there is hardly anyone merely to say some appreciative words forgetting the momento(s) and awards. There is a serious problem as of now with the support that teachers get from the ministry of education let alone from the Principals of our schools today. This issue if taken care by the RCSC in particular, I bet you  teachers will perform miracles if not heartily groom the happy citizens of tomorrow. 

3. Leadership
A school in any corner of this world is defined by the principal leading that school. A school is a ship and principal its captain. All teachers and students are mere passengers. Together and only together they can sail towards destiny. Of late, I have heard of exceptional teachers not given a platform to perform in schools just because the principal belongs to some old school of thought. Prove me wrong if no such principals exist. There are plenty beginning from where I am now writing this piece. A leader must say 'Let’s go' not just 'Go' to achieve the vision what they had envisioned in beginning of the academic year. A school can be successful only if its principal is ethically and professionally correct in judgments whether be curricular or co-curricular, professional or personal on the teachers and students.

All of the three reasons above best justify my stand on what can the education system of Bhutan do to make the present generation of youth educated, responsible, productive and efficient citizens of tomorrow.

Thank You. 

My Double Trouble

My Trouble

After a day’s work when you think of having a power nap out of exhaustion the act of power napping is defeated by my kid who eagerly waits for me and even before I change she asks me, “Shoo Shoo” meaning pick her up in her usual temper tantrums. What is there to do next? Just listen and give in to her demands.

The Double Trouble

It’s a Sunday and you think of having a good baby sleep in the morning and again Tenzin wakes me up early calling “Papa (Loudly)… No No” meaning milk. She then holds my index finger and takes to me to the kitchen where I must pour her a bottle of milk.

A kid at home means double trouble for a dad like me...Two kids...you can only imagine the trouble. For all the troubles that my kids cause especially the elder one made me update this short verse. Happy reading!

Thank you god for

For the children of mine

Who teach me things

That blow my mind.

They entertain themselves

In the funniest ways.

I pray that the innocence

They possess never goes away.

I pray they will grow up

And be smart.

I pray they never feel alone.

I pray they will call home

Whenever near a phone.

And know that your dad

Will always be there.