Dr. Vincent David, Youth Chaplaincy Director for the North Caribbean Conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, met on Monday morning for a pep-talk session with four of the six students attending the Pupil’s Referral Unit (PRU) located in the Quarter.
Dr. David was at the time visiting the island on a working mission with the youth of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in a special series of youth activities held over the last weekend, February 10th and 11th. His visit to the school was arranged by the Institute’s Coordinator, Ms. Marcia Hodge.
The PRU students listened quite attentively, and responded jovially with candor and respect. Dr. David’s inspiring, motivational discourse was intended to boost the student’s self-confidence and enhance their self-esteem which would help them to be more prepared to face the demands and challenges of life in the 21st century.
One of the first questions that the Doctor asked was: what the student wanted to be in life. All of them were not very prepared for answering such a question, but after a little prodding and brainstorming they were ready to open up. Diazhe claimed that she loves cooking, so she has the potential of landing a career as a chef one day. Dr. David encouraged her to seriously consider that as a possibility.
Deandra loves listening to music, but bluntly answered that she does not know what she wants to take on as a career. Dr. David told her, in encouraging tones: “Don’t say you don’t know what you want to be, but rather say, ‘I don’t know what I want to be yet.’ He suggested that since she loves music, she should consider writing her own songs or maybe writing a book since she said her favorite subject was English.
The boys, though, were more ready in relating what their vocation would be. Xaje decided that he wants to be a basketball player. After Dr. David applauded him for such a noble aspiration, and told him about the region’s popular superstar basketball player, Tim Duncan, who has Anguillian roots. He then told him that it is quite befitting that he chose to be involved in that sport, for earlier he had told him that his favorite subject was mathematics. Dr. David explained that basketball involves a lot of geometrical angles, gauging, timing, and deciphering calculated moves which involve math skills — therefore, it would be quite appropriate for him to develop himself in the field of math, which would compliment his love for basketball.
Ethan, who was physically the smallest of the group, was perhaps the most ready and willing of the four to express a big desire for his future profession. He claimed that he wants to be a heavy equipment operator, driving big trucks and heavy machinery. He eloquently gave a detailed explanation of the various mechanical systems of the truck, including the “5th wheel”; air-break systems; gears; suspension shocks; leaf springs; and rear air-bags for the purpose of preventing vibrations. He also referred to the various sizes of equipment which carry CAT engines. His technical jargon and explanations were so admirable, that Dr. David suggested it would be a great idea for him to take up a course in mechanical engineering as a profession, rather than just being an ordinary truck driver. When asked whom he emulates in the field of trucking, Ethan answered that he works on the trucks with his father and bigger brother.
The Doctor encouraged the students to do all they can to make themselves ready to face life in the future. He advised them to learn and practice basic skills at home —such skills as cooking, ironing and making their own beds, instead of leaving everything for their parents to do. He reminded them that life is very short, and they should make every action in life count for their good. “Remember, it’s GIGO: either ‘good in, good out’ or ‘garbage in, garbage out.’ What you sow, you will reap.” He admonished them to do all they can to steer clear of habits that would make their lives shorter than what God would have allotted then. His sound advice was well taken.
Reflecting upon his own schooling, he told the students: “I grew up in the ghetto. As a child, my family moved from one island to another so often, and everywhere we lived it was life in the ghetto for me. Some people told me that I would never make it. But I always held the contention that I could be the brightest in my class, and so I did everything that would make me the brightest. That was my goal, so school work became important to me. It was my priority as a child. But, because my family moved from island to island so often, I was hampered many times by the fact that there was no space in the class that I was supposed to be in, so I was often ‘put back’.
“Because I was placed back a minimum of four times, I ended up finishing high school at 20. By then, I had quit school twice, because I was tired of being ‘put back’. My parents did not even know I had dropped out of school. I would leave home for school, but never attended classes. One day, though, my schoolmates came home looking for me, and encouraged me to come back. I did. And again, when I went back to school, somehow I always had the ambition to be the brightest. Eventually, I did well. Finally, I graduated from high school at age 20, went to college, and graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Theology and Business Administration, before studying further.”
Dr. David’s closing words to the students were: “I have always held on to this thought throughout my school years: ‘Nobody else could keep me back but myself’. You need to adopt that. Remember that opportunities come which are profitable for you. And in order to make you a better person, you would need to embrace them, ‘cause they may never come back again.”
At the end of his exhortation, Diazhe gave Dr. David a short expression of thanks. Also sitting in on the pep-talk were the members of staff. These included: Ms. S. Marcia Hodge, Coordinator; Mr. Henderson Burgess, Instructor for English, Math, PE, Humanities, and Practical Art; Ms. Leonise Francis, Instructor for English, Math, and Asst. Humanities and Science Instructor; Ms. Samantha Warner, Counselor; Ms. Linda Coppede, Book Club and Drama Instructor; as well as Mr. Tyrone Brooks, Security Officer and Asst. PE Instructor.
Life is very short….
