Just some thoughts....

Ruth finally got back her examination results. Twelve papers in it all. Surprisingly, she did better than expected. But she needed to improve on her Bahasa Malaysia and Chinese.. These two subject grades stood out like a sore thumb in her results.

Looking back, children of Ruth's generation had it alot easier compared to that of my time. During my schooldays, tuition classes were a luxury and almost unheard of. Neither could my parents afford them. But my brother John and me took upon ourselves to work hard and achieve the best we could. We watch our parents struggle to earn a living and understood that a good education is essential for a better future.We needed no second reminders. When our results fell short of expectation, we redoubled our efforts to make the grade.

But times have changed. Many a times, Ruth took her education for granted, grumbled and complained when her tuition teacher and me assigned her extra assignments and homework. Sometimes, she does not seem to appreciate or understand that a good education is the key to a better and brighter future. With all the creature comforts, conveniences around and most things at their beck and call, most of these children are seldom appreciative of the hard work, scarifices and the struggles of their forefathers. When things came too easy, it's even easier to forget the value or importance of it.
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