"Who we are and who we are meant to become is a collection of constant creation and revision...I am still a work in progress."

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Meeting Francis

The day finally came that I met with my tutor at the Center for Literacy. All of the training sessions, day dreams, and discussions about service led up to this evening. However, the actual experience was much different from what I had imagined. I awoke from an accidental nap ten minutes before the van's departure from Wolfington. Needless to say, I sprung from my bed, grabbed the tutoring materials and scurried out the door. After a five minute run, I made it to Wolfington with a few minutes to spare. I was glad to see that fellow classmates were sitting impatiently on the curb. Since I only had a few minutes to gather my thoughts, I did not allow my nerves to overwhelm me. Instead I spoke with one of my classmates about an upcoming volleyball game until I heard an approaching vehicle.

Sure enough, the maroon van quickly pulled towards where I stood by the curb. I slid into the second row and began to fiddle with my bag. The tension was obviously present, as no one spoke on our way to CFL. The entire journey I tried to make small talk to clear the air. After a few attempts, I decided it would be best to instead take in my surroundings. I began to see children running innocently through the streets on their way home from school. This sight alone reminded me of the film that we have watched this past week in class. After hearing passing sirens, my nerves stood on edge. I could not help but question if the neighborhoods were safe. Obviously, the schools in Philadelphia are unlike the schools in my hometown. I would never question students walking home from school in my area. However, I remind myself that this is a whole new world. The poor learning environment is one of the leading problems in the troublesome education system.

The van parked in front of the familiar brick building. The class unloaded from the vehicle and shyly entered into Center for Literacy. While we usually were greeted by Mark's enthusiasm, this time one of the students stood outside and greeted us with a puff of cigarette smoke. We trailed in past the student, and made our way into the building only to be welcomed by a class full of students. The lingering question in everyone's head was “Which student is mine?”

As I sat in my seat waiting for Mark to begin the session, I scanned the room and took in the initial impressions of the students. Just from my first judgments I easily understood the diversity between us. While the tutors were predominantly white, the students were mostly black. The tutors were all college students, while the students themselves were generally middle aged. Once Mark began the meeting, a few other students trailed into the building. One particularly stood apart from the others. She was a tall, beautiful young woman who walked in with a giant smile across her face. In a few minutes time, I learned that she would be my student.

Francis is a twenty-one year old woman who moved from Africa to Philadelphia two years ago. Currently, she lives with her uncle and another woman with three kids of her own. She works five days a week from 6 in the morning til 2 in the afternoon at the Philadelphia airport. Like myself, she loves to belt out the lyrics to Rihanna even though she knows she isn't the best singer. Her favorite food is rice and she likes to watch Wizards of Waverly Place. Her dream job is to become a nurse so she can help others. It just so happens that her parents were unable to care for her in the seventh grade. It just so happens that because of this troubling circumstance she lost interest in school and dropped out. It just so happens that a proper education is the only hindrance pulling Francis back from her dream job. So instead of having a pity party for herself, Francis uses her days off from work to go to school. Francis is admirably working towards bettering her life. We are working together to make her dream a reality.

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