A Student’s Perspective

“The only thing that decides who is good enough is if you have enough desire, enough will to do it.”

How many people have in some way affected my life? A lot. How many made a change in me for the better? Again, a lot. But how many are responsible for the things that today form about 80% of my character? About three, and I happen to live with the first two because they’re my parents. The third was someone I never expected could match their influence: Madam Ashraf, the principal of Preparatory School Islamabad.

I moved to Pakistan for a year and a half because of my father’s business, and I really did not want to leave the United States. I wasn’t fluent in Urdu, and on my first day I arrived with my parents as a lifeless boy. The level of study was so advanced compared with America that I started out with poor grades.

In the office I was greeted by a silky grey-haired woman. She asked me, “Do you think you’ll do well here?” I shrugged: “Not really. It looks real hard.” She was silent for an awkward ten seconds, then smiled with a look that said “I’ve figured you out.” “You are going to do very well here,” she said, and took my hand and led me to my class herself.

Madam Ashraf was almost never in her office. She was always among her students, in the corridors or out on the grounds. Whenever she saw me she would call me over and talk, about school or about home, and it was reassuring to have someone to turn to. When I looked tired or down she would offer me extra food at break or a trip to the nurse. She treated me with the same care for the whole year.

Whenever I faced homesickness, loneliness or falling grades, I would find myself called to her office before anyone else noticed. She always found out what was wrong, and always told me how to solve it myself. That is where I learned the importance of telling someone about your problems.

Once I told her I wanted to do something impressive, but that everyone was so smart and I wasn’t good enough. She gave me a startling little slap on the hand and said, “The only thing that decides who is good enough is if you have enough desire, enough will to do it.” Then she encouraged me to try things I had never done. I ran for election, performed in a musical, played on the school football team and competed in a public speaking competition, and I succeeded in each, because someone special had told me that I could. I laughed with happiness when I won the student council election.

Madam Ashraf showed me how much a little love can bring out in a person. Because she showed me such care, I learned to believe in myself too.