Bila Besar Nanti Nak Jadik Apa?

Call me old, but I have this bad habit of asking the same questions when I first interact with children. I like to call it adult-to-kid-small-talk. The questions usually range from the basic "Nama apa?", "Umur berapa?" to the slightly deeper "Sekarang belajar darjah berapa?". Recently however, I've started to add a few sophisticated questions in to my repertoire of adult-to-kid-small-talk. One of them being the infamous "Bila besar nanti nak jadik apa?".

A few months ago I had the opportunity to join a Charity Club to a visit to a special school for blind children in JB. The school which doubled as a dormitory housed probably around 60 students from pre-schoolers to high school students. The program lasted for 2 days and around 40 students from UTM were there to entertain and motivate the children.

During my period there, I was amazed at how these children behaved despite their disability. I would hold my breath every time I saw students run along the narrow corridors, expecting them to bump in to something or fall when they instead maneuvered skillfully around poles and skipped across stairs as though they could see with each confident step. I was equally amazed on how cheerful the students were, how their condition did nothing to pull them back from enjoying life and the experiences that came hand in hand with them. I guess these are the benefits of being children.

Unfortunately though, I am cursed as an adult. I was left pondering and wondering about the children's future. Every time I looked at their cheerful faces, I couldn't help but wonder the adversities they might and would probably face. Excuse my pessimism, but what idealistic future could sustain these special children? A future that would allow them the same opportunities every other children has and provide them with success equaled to their efforts. I realized with a bad taste in mouth, that the world was far from being ideal. And I wasn't the only one. I could see a number of the facilitators break, their heads bowed slightly, hiding the tears filling up in their eyes.

The program ended with smiles and laughter of course. A few teary outbursts occurred due to the separation but was quickly dried up by the anticipation of promises to yet again meet. Hugs and shakes were exchanged with a mixture of both love and respect from both sides. I would like to believe that we somehow made an impact even though slight on these children's lives. Wishful thinking perhaps, but one can hope.

I wish the best for these children and hope that their futures hold a much more easier path than the one my hampered realistic mind could limitly imagine. Call me weak, but I just didn't have the strength to ask them, "Bila besar nanti nak jadik apa?".

Blogging off....