Jul 31 2009
Thanks for my education!
My Dad came to Canada in 1935. I can just picture Dad coming off the ship all by himself, landing in Halifax with no family, no friends, no home, no money. How difficult that must have been at the young age of fifteen. Where was he going to go? He followed other people that he met on the ship to Montreal by train. One woman took him under her wing and directed him to her sister’s home where he rented this tiny room.
How was he going to pay for room and board? For a couple of days, he walked from store to store requesting work, but he could hardly speak English and no one wanted to hire him. He did speak eight other languages, but this was not of value. A week later, he lent money from his landlord, bought a very inexpensive second hand car, quickly learned how to drive and was on his way. He purchased bread and rolls from bakeries and went door to door in the area where he lived, selling his ware. And so, for forty years he was called the ”Breadman”. He worked fifteen and more hours a day to pay back his loan and continued his bread business for forty years.
In 1944, he married my mom who also arrived into Canada in 1936 with her parents, brother, and sisters. My mom’s parents were quite poor, but Dad was not concerned as he was immediately welcomed into a family that he so desperately longed for. My parents always had their own financial struggles, but they consistently managed to give their children, four of us, (I’m the youngest!) the essentials and even more. They forever insisted that we attend university, and for that, among many other things, we are all forever thankful.
For some reason, I was always destined to be a teacher. I think my parents made sure of that. As a child, they bought me blackboards, chalk, a desk, a variety of books, and they asked me to teach them how to read and write when I was young. I loved it! Dad never had time to go to school, always working late while mom was busy keeping up the chores in the house. I was always excited to teach them since they had such a strong desire to learn, especially the English language. They were always inquisitive and even though they hardly had time, they made sure they read and practiced their writing skills each and every day. And, I made sure of that!
And so, I am very thankful to both my parents for leading me down the road to education. They showed me the value and strong desire for learning. Although I’ve been teaching for many years, I still adore my job and I’m thankful to mom and dad for paving this route for me.
