A Light in the Cyclone

A Light in the Cyclone

Everyone was eager and ready for the start of the new school year. We had 18 new students joining us in the secondary school, and we wanted to make sure they felt prepared and welcomed on their first day.  

Then came the cyclone.  

It hit the day before our first day of school, which meant that our new student orientation was cancelled and the first day of school was postponed by 2 days. We still did our best to guide new students as they arrived on campus, but without proper orientation, many of them seemed overwhelmed.  

One new student in particular, a 15-year-old girl, was waiting near my office. I asked if she needed help with anything. She told me that she didn’t know where to go because her class schedule was blank. I tried to help her the best I could, as she waited for our academic dean to assist her in registering for classes. The dean soon came and led the student to his office, but only a few minutes later, the dean came back to my office, and said, “I think I need you.” 

Being one of the counselors on campus and seeing the look on the dean’s face, I knew something wasn’t right. I walked to his office and found the student in tears.  

The dean left us alone, and I asked her what was wrong. Through tears she proceeded to tell me that she was feeling very overwhelmed and had had problems at her old school. She talked about being bullied by teachers because she is Christian and her teachers were Muslim. (Christians are a minority here.) She spoke of one teacher specifically who was especially cruel and made her not like school anymore. This is what led her mother to look for another school. In telling this story, she mentioned meeting our Head of Secondary during her interview. “I had never met anyone like him before,” she said, meaning she had never met a school teacher or administrator who was so kind and caring. This is what led her family to our school with the hope that it would be better. 

My heart ached for the student and what she had been through. I didn’t want to make any promises about what her experience would be like at our school, but I also knew that I wanted to do everything I could, to help her feel welcomed and succeed. I walked her back to my office, and we talked a bit more. Eventually, she was able to feel calmer, stop crying, and even laugh a little. I answered a few practical questions and made sure to help her connect with the right people to finalize her schedule. She left seeming a bit less anxious and reassured. 

A few hours later, I noticed her standing in the lunch line. I was both surprised and excited to see her smiling and laughing with new friends. It seemed as if the worries that had overwhelmed her in the morning had melted away. She was at peace.  

While it’s too early to know what the rest of the school year will bring for this student, I feel affirmed in knowing that this is what it means when Jesus calls us to be a light in this world (Matthew 5:14). We are called to be different and to love others, especially the broken-hearted, in a way that makes us stand out (John 13:34-35) and in a way that may seem unusual or even surprising to others—just like it was for this student.  

As we work to continue supporting students through this school year, may we strive to continue to be different and to bring light into the lives of so many young people who long to be seen, heard, and loved just as God loves us.