On Mothers and Teachers
So Teacher Appreciation week came to an end and it's Mother's Day now. We're celebrating two roles that are not mutually exclusive. If it wasn't for the incredible teachers around me, I would've fallen through the cracks early on. Starting at the age of 4, I was bullied, called names, and humiliated by my peers for the colour of my skin, my mother tongue, my ethnic background... Basically, things that I had no control over. I can still recall the day I was called "Black" by fellow 5-year olds. I watched them revel over my misery. I had learned to hate myself. At age 5. And things could've gone worse from there, if not for the presence of some wonderful teachers. Teachers who built up my confidence and self-worth, one kind word at a time. Teachers who taught me how to choose kindness over cruelty. And I chose to remember the time my second grade teacher said I have beautiful features... To this day, I have no idea what that means. But I kept h
