Desmond HenryTREASURE BEACH:
AS YOU are about to start another school year, I thought I would write an open letter to you, your teachers and your parents. And since I understand that reading is not a fashionable thing among most of you these days, I doubt that many of you will ever read this newspaper column. Nonetheless, I hope that your teachers or your parents will either read or interpret this for you.
My main aim is to try and put in your young heads, the vital importance of an education. In life, a thing that is of absolute importance is called a sine qua non. It is a Latin phrase meaning 'without which not', but since they hardly teach Latin in our schools anymore, I doubt that many of you would have heard of it. But you do grasp the meaning, I'm sure. Oxygen for example, is a sine qua non for remaining alive. Without it, we would all be dead. Without an education, your human development will be nought; your country will not get very far; and your own future will be meaningless.
Getting an education can mean different things to different people. To the proud and pompous, it may be nothing more than just another way to show off. To the fervent and dedicated, it is a tool in helping yourself, your family, your community and your country to grow and develop. Most times, an education is all the power you will ever need. It can embolden your wildest imagination. It will give you confidence, courage and strength to widen your horizons. It will make you dream, challenge old orders and create new ideas. It empowers the most vital part of your anatomy your mind. And once that power resides in your mind, no one can take it away from you. But without an education, the reverse takes place. Anyone can influence, and you become a pawn in other people's schemes.
Now, there are some elements in your schooling that are more important than others. You of course must have heard of the three "R's" - reading, 'riting (writing) and 'rithmetic. Of the three, reading is the sine qua non. If you cannot read, you are at the greatest disadvantage. Reading enables you to comprehend and understand what is being written and said by others. Without reading, your ability to understand and interpret what others are writing and saying, becomes very limited. But more than that it curtails your ability to express yourself fully, articulate your points persuasively, or convince others that you know what you are talking about.
It also restricts the depth of your comprehension i.e. how much you understand what others are saying, and how it can help you to throw new light on your own thoughts and ideas.
You will soon discover, once you are out of school, how important a part your ability to express yourself is going to play in your life ahead. When I was your age, in an era without radio and television, I learnt a lot about outside world by reading National Geographic magazines to which my mom and dad subscribed. All my brothers and sisters did the same. My mom kept the magazines in perpetuity all her life. When she passed away a few years ago, I was able to donate to the libraries of three schools in my district, three cartons of National Geographic magazines in her memory; some going all the way back to the early 1940s. The point is, kids, unless you start now to develop a habit for reading, you will never create a curiosity for life. And that will be a great pity for you.
I am aware that many of you will now tell me that with television and the great growth in visual learning, you won't have to read as much. Consider this, however.
Look at what television and the electronic industry have done to our social standards and our country's morality. Are you happy that the most that our creative minds can produce are a set of half-naked, vulgarly gyrating torsos on screen; or a vocabulary of sordid, unprintable language? Is that the best you think your country can do for you in the world ahead?
Do you or your children of the future, want to be part of a country in which you are judged for your vulgarity, and not by your cleverness? Have you ever thought about these things and how they will affect your own life in the future? If not, please do so now.
Finally I want you to understand the role of your teachers in your schools.
They are your friends, your partners and some of the greatest help you will ever get in life, for the price that you are paying. Despite how harshly you might think they grade your papers, nothing pleases them more than your own success. Your triumph is their triumph as well. They are there for you everyday with love, compassion and a desire to help you succeed.
Do not try to abuse your teachers or take them for granted. Rather, trust them, believe in them and become joint partners with them for your own success. And if you find that I may have used some words that you don't fully understand, ask your teacher to explain them for you.
I could write much more about your part in your own future and that of your country. But this should be enough for now. Read hard, learn hard, study hard, and life should not be too hard for you.
THE BOTTOM LINE:
Life is not a fast-food restaurant, where you can drive up and order "one success to go."
Desmond Henry is a marketing strategist based in Treasure Beach, St. Elizabeth.
