To All the Children

Unsplash

From April 2011-August 2011,I taught children from or whose parents were from Ethiopia, Bangladesh, the Dominican Republic, China and Central America.

I showed up to teach them privately in their homes or at the public library.

It was a wonderful four months of meeting with them weekly.

To be honest, I fell in love with those children.

I remember trying ‘anjera’ (a soft, squishy bread with a sour taste popular in Ethiopia and Eritrea).

I remember being close with some of the parents.

I remember how all of their homes looked.

I remember feeling happy when the children were mostly cooperative and enthusiastically learned.

I remember eating a slice of birthday cake once.

I remember sampling a South Asian eggplant dish.

Those children are sometimes on my mind.

I have a soft spot for children.

It hurts me thinking about all the neglected children in the world.

It’s cruel to ignore a crying, screaming baby.

I am against corporal punishment on children.

I perceive even yelling as corporal punishment.