Anew dawn

Sometimes when I come to a clearer or a new realization of something, it tends to blow my mind away a little to a point of no return. There’s this sweet atmosphere I’m sent into when I become convicted. Many a times when I am in that state I fail to put my thoughts into words like I am doing now. After a while though, I am able to pack up and categorize things in my mind that way I can be able to articulate my train of thought. This is one of those moments. I’ve entitled this a new dawn because really, that’s exactly what it is. See the power of revelation is one: time. It never made sense to me why back in primary school there where divisions according to intellectual ability, why we had to be classified according to how we are able to grasp what we are taught but now I fully understand. The reason I am bringing this up is because many people who become confident enough to share (blogs, statuses, emails etc) what they learn are at the risk of being undermined or judged, simply because what is a new dawn to me this morning, was a new dawn to one reader two and a half months ago.

The teachers must have realized that it’s only best that the smarter kids get a teacher who is able to deal with their drama; I assume they were the ones with the weirdest character traits (if you get what I mean). And the ones who took a little more repetition to grasp certain concepts would need a patient and smooth teacher, these, I noticed where the very energetic, street smart, social butterflies, who where experts in other fields of life such as the social, communication, creative arts and practical activities such as sports, dramas, dance and so forth. There was always a mix breed who were simply a balanced type. These kids could manage to win academically and otherwise. They too needed a well rounded and neutral teacher. Look, I am not an expert in what I just said but I trust that my point came across. We are different and need to hone in ourselves the kill to have patience and acceptance for other people, their flaws their pace, their abilities or the lack of them, their expertise and their setbacks.

I learnt this with my niece and nephew. Tebello (Junior) aged 17 is an academic, I live with them so its been a lot easier to study them and know how to relate to them. He is not very talkative. He cannot, for the life in him, do any labor related chores; they strain his entire life lol. I know how to get to him through conversation. He is smart you see, a firm leader and a strict yet fun folk. He is also very analytical and a big critic. Nothing that’s faulty goes past him unnoticed. He is my very own walking dictionary. The twist with him is that he is so well read that he now knows a lot of history and current trends through many fraternities. One minute we debating politics in Syria the next he is telling me how the melody in that song would have been better if they scaled it down at the climax and not at the beginning. An hour later, he is telling me how that Pastor actually mentioned something the NIV Bible omitted. Soon he is going on about how some rare fish species has been discovered to have a cure for some toxic disease in Kenya. 

 

Phehello (Asher), my darling 9 year old drama queen is very artistic, passes all her subjects well, but always causes a serious imbalance. Her languages are always lower than her maths. She can calculate anything, though she struggles, given a formula or not, she will finally get it. It’s not as effortless for her as it is for Junior. Could be the age thing, but I am judging this on, say ability. Make Phehello listen to a disc once, and the next time we are in the car she is singing along like she heard it thrice. She is such a performer. Sometimes I just watch her and not say anything, and she can go on dancing a routine we saw in a movie earlier like she choreographed it. She is awesome when it comes to anything artistic. She fell in love with the guitar in grade 2 and when she holds it and starts playing, I just stare. On the flip side, as a social butterfly I see that it takes more effort for me to get her to sit still or focus on something ‘boring” such as reading a long story, she would rather get a pencil and sketch a new hairdo or dress design for the princess in that story, unlike Junior, who since he could read, was always buried in some sort of book. 

When I started typing, the aim was to tell of a new dawn in my life but I’ve diverted with reason. So let me pose a challenge to any and everyone reading this: Patience. Who is it out there that you just don’t understand. Someone who irritates you or you simply cannot “get”? Have you considered the difference between the two of you; have you tried to find a way to make your character traits, abilities or inabilities gel well together? Or have you just given up and do all you can to avoid that person? I laugh when I think given the chance and grace many of whom I have given up on could be my closest friends or now closer to me like Junior and Asher are. Someone somewhere out there is your future something and you haven’t followed the example of your teachers, who took it upon themselves to learn and deal with you specifically.

J I hope you concur.