Volunteering

I've been volunteering to tutor a six-year-old boy every Monday morning. His mother is a Vietnamese and he apparently has difficulty adapting to  primary school  life; that's why I was asked to help. Teaching him is no easy task at all. He literally resists learning, which seems odd to me. I thought kids love learning new stuff or at least they try to do what they're asked to so that they get praised. But this guy always says no at first even when I talk to him softly and nicely; later, when I put on a serious face, he finally reluctantly obeys and at the same time whines. He's not trying to get attention or something like that as far as I observe. He hates it and I can not, at all,  relate to the attitude. In retrospect, "bo po mo fo" is like installed in my brain since 2 or younger; but to him, it's so hard that he becomes impatient in less than 25 minutes. I don't complain so much to a teacher; at least not right in front of her!
I know I got to be more compassionate as he has a very different background from me. He probably didn't get the idea of the basic knowledge young enough and that's not his fault nor his parent's. From the experience, I realized many things that, after depressing me,  make me humble and thankful. I feel sincerely grateful for what my parents have provided me through out my life- the music classes, the English cram school, the fun vacations and most of all, their youth and love. Also, I am convinced that one shall not have kids before he/she's well-prepared, both financially and mentally. Raising a child is definitely not as simple as it looks. To give life to a baby and then educate him/her to become a descent person needs mental maturity and heart-full will and patience.