Life as a mentor

by Wanee

Life as a mentor is not always a walk in the park. In fact, every day brings in a new challenge that keeps us, the mentors, on our toes and wits. Last Tuesday however, it was more challenging than usual.

The sky was grey as if it could predict the multiple meltdowns we were about to face that afternoon. One kid, waking up from her nap in the car, was screaming bloody murder and refused to let go of the armrest of her seat which she had a death-grip of. Exasperated with her child’s tantrum, the mother sought our help to deal with this mild version of Emily Rose. With superhuman effort and patience, we half-carried, half-dragged her to the centre. Once she washed her face and was fully awake, she gave us a sheepish smile [photo] and started upstairs to her class as if nothing was amiss.

Glad to have that taken care of, Zaiton and I sighed with relief. No even a minute after, the doorbell rang. On the other side of the glass door, another girl was clinging to her mother’s waist with tears running down her round peached cheeks. Oh No! That was the first time we saw crying. She would normally come in with a grin on her face and greet everyone warmly. After about twenty minutes of cajoling and coaxing, she agreed to go upstairs though she was still clearly upset. Once her mentor opened the door and ushered her inside, she sat down wailing. A few seconds later, she settled down and participate in class as usual. My best bet for her distress – her t-shirt dress was not pretty enough!

As I sat for a bit to make sure the girl was okay, I heard the doorbell rang. I rushed down to greet the parents whom I had a progress-meet with. Right on the dot. The meeting went well and both parents were pleased with their kid’s progress. At 6:30pm, the bell rang to indicate that class session was over.

During dismissal, a boy who saw his mother climbing out of the car to fetch him, refused to leave the sofa he was comfortably sitting on at the reception area. His mother had to threaten to leave him here with us before he reluctantly made himself walk to the glass door.

What a day!

Sidenote: I am happy to share that both girls were on their best spirit the next lesson onwards.