Maryam Khaleeq was my junior. A girl full of energy who used to smile all the time. I never got the chance to know her well, but it showed. As much as I had noticed her, I figured that she had trouble being confident.
Read the background story here.
Here’s how it goes…
I was playing with the juniors in the court. We were playing football, I think. Maryam Khaleeq was there, too. She seemed disappointed at herself when she wasn’t playing well. That’s when I talked to her as a friend and a fellow human being. I asked her to believe in herself. I told her that if she isn’t playing that well, she should keep trying and soon the day would come when people would envy her for her skills.
I still remember that smile. She hugged me so hard after I said a few motivational words ever so warmly that it melted me. That girl was etched with innocence and a beautiful smile. You see, when God plants a beautiful plant in the ground, it’s the gardener’s job to make sure it turns out well. The gardeners are teachers, parents, siblings, friends and random people.
When I started out in LGS, I was a broken soul because I didn’t give my O’ level exams due to health issues. It took me 5 years to get an O’levels degree. But I know how much I had to fight in A’levels. There were rumors about me. Some people who knew me in A’ levels tried to dig in about my past. My psychology teacher in A’levels LGS JT (whom my mother asked to take care of me) demoralized me and even asked my best friend’s parents to stay away from me. And just because of that, even my best friend was rude to me because of that teacher.
There was also a time when my juniors started spreading rumors and teasing me as well with random questions like, ‘If I paid you 200 rs to eat tatti, would you eat it?” She was a girl of 10th-grade music class (hint: a friend of Sara Mehdi).
Anyhow, coming back to Maryam Khaleeq, I understand that she probably didn’t get the moral support that a girl who lacks confidence, needed. In LGS, she probably received the opposite. Thus, I do blame LGS for this. I blame her so-called friends, too. I blame those who pretended to be sincere. I blame those who simply observed her breakdown from afar and called to ask her how she is.
In O’ levels, when I was breaking, all I ever wished for was to hear that someone is worried about me. Maryam probably couldn’t take the heartache and had a panic attack. I salute her for fighting through and getting outstanding grades in her Law exam. May she be blessed in heaven where her aching soul can finally be free.
Those who agree that school isn’t all just about ensuring that students get good grades, but is a place to enhance character and strength to face the real world; should SHARE this post. Thank you.