From this project I learned that if there was still a need to be a teacher, it does not mean to plan some activities, to enter the class, to teach a lesson and to go out, closing the door behind you. To be a teacher means to open the door of your soul to the souls of the students, to see in the children the happiness, the suffering, the joy, the emotion, the states that are behind each personal history of these students. But this requires time and availability, it means trust on both sides, which is gained over time.

The project “Come to school! Change your destiny! ” it gave me this opportunity to get to know the children better and to find out the stories of which characters they are. One of the experiences in the project made a deep impression on me.

One day, while doing ice-breaking exercises, the children were invited to choose from the multitude of cards that were placed on the table a card that they consider representative of themselves and to justify their choice.

The student Baciu Cristian chose a monster that holds a spoon in his left hand and a fork in his right hand. There was an empty plate in front of the little monster. Asked about his choice, Cristian gave a shocking answer: he said that this is his image when he gets home and receives nothing to eat. I found out then that this is his reality: he comes from a large family, with with very small salary. Then I noticed that he often does not eat all the food he receives in the project, preferring to share it with his brothers. Marked by this story, I later took the necessary steps for the family of this child to submit the documentation for social scholarship, because the parents, being illiterate, did not know about this possibility.

Certainly, if we had not spent so many hours together in the project so that this student would trust me, we would never have found out this story, kept secret, because being poor in our country is a shame.

Beyond the fact that we offer to children some interesting activities, a hot meal that may be the only one a day, we offer them soul, understanding, communication and empathy. We help people!

Local expert GT, Nițu Ioana Raluca, “Mihail Sadoveanu” High School Întorsura Buzăului