It was just another Saturday and I was enjoying a late morning breakfast at a local dim-sum outlet with my wife Elaine and my son, Andy.
Out of nowhere, Elaine received a phone call with a distinct ringtone. I’ve heard that ringtone tune enough times over the past six months to know it was a call from work.
My beautiful, fair Elaine glanced at her phone and then looked up at me with an apologetic face. “Sorry darling, I’ve got to take this,” she said as she picked up her phone and stood up.
I watched Elaine walk briskly away to a quieter spot with her phone to her ear. Elaine was dressed in a figure-hugging, knee-length, green pencil skirt and a loose cream colored silk blouse. I’ve noticed that she was wearing clothes that showed off her incredible figure-skater curves more and more often recently. She had also started wearing some light make-up and wearing her long, layered, black hair down her back. Her change in fashion sense happened not long after she took up her new job six months ago.
As I popped a warm siew mai into my mouth, my mind wandered back to the phone call which I had received a year ago which had set my wife on her new career path.
It was a call from my mother, Kate.
Call from 6 months ago:
Me: Hello? Ma?
Mum: Hello son, how are you doing?
Me: I’m doing well. Thank you.
Mum: What about Elaine and Andy?
Me: Yes they are fine too. How can I help, ma?
Mum: Haha. You’re always so straight to the point one, boy.
Me: Sorry ma. How are you?
Mum: I’m very well, thank you. Never mind, let’s just get to the point. How would you and Elaine like to come work for me?
Me: Work…? You mean volunteer at your organization?
Mum: No lah, I mean fully employed. With a salary and all other benefits.
Me: I think we talked about this years ago. I really don’t think it’s for me.
Mum: Is it the pay? We’ve received quite generous funding. I promise it won’t be less than what you’re currently making.
Me: No, it’s not about money, ma. I like where I am now. Not really looking for a change of pace.
Mum: Oh, I see. Sorry, I never thought of it that way.
Me: It’s alright ma.
Mum: If you don’t mind, could you pass a word to Elaine to gauge her interest? I hate to impose, but as it stands our organization could really use an English teacher and an experienced counselor.
Me: I’ll ask her ma, but I doubt she’s interested as well.
Mum: It’s alright if she’s not. Thank you son. Also, if it’s not too much trouble, could you help me spread the word a little at your place of work? We are in need of teachers of caliber for some other subjects as well. Just pass them my number if they seem interested.
Me: Sure, ma. I can do that.
Mum: Thank you for helping me out. How about we go to dinner tomorrow? Your father would very much like to see Andy.
Me: Sure ma. Let me know the time and location.
That was about six months ago. As promised, I mentioned my mum’s offer to Elaine. At first she didn’t seem interested. But a few days later my mum called her directly to have a chat. My mum must have been very persuasive, because Elaine soon came to me, saying that she was considering my mum’s offer.
Elaine felt she needed a change, especially with how things ended with her three previous students. I guess there’s just too much baggage at our current place of work.
I didn’t have any objections. Working for my mum may not have a good salary progression, but it is fulfilling work. In my opinion, it is much more suited for Elaine who likes to help people.
My mother, Katheryn Tan, is a director of a foundation that provides education to underprivilleged children and children who are left behind by the system. It basically runs as a private school, but admission is reserved only for those whose parents are very poor, are refugees, or problem kids who are expelled from other schools. While my mother’s foundation focuses on secondary education, there is a sister organization that tackles primary education.
Basically, the foundation’s goal is to catch as many students as possible who slipped through the cracks, and get them past O-Levels so that they at least have a basic qualification as opposed to nothing at all.
I volunteered a lot for my mother’s foundation back in my schooling days. It helped me built an impressive extra-curricular section for my university applications. Over the years I still help out every now and then, so I pretty much know their operation inside and out.
I remembered that Elaine and I visited the foundation school before she was due to start. My mum was only too happy to give us a tour.
My mother, Katheryn, is a lovely, elegant, highly educated, and vivacious woman who is very passionate about her foundation’s work. She started her foundation with several of my aunts after they received a substantial inheritance from my grandfather’s passing.
Despite having just hit 50 years old, my mother looked anything but. The woman still looked like she was in her 30s. Sometimes people would even mistake her for being in her late 20s as well. Most people who hears of her real age would be absolutely flabbergasted. I guess good genes run in her family. It also helped that my mother was rather deeply, and naturally beautiful, with vibrant, lustrous, wavy long black hair without the slightest hint of grey and was rather fit, given her penchant for tennis and dancing.
I’ve gotten used to people being surprised at my mother’s age-defying prowess. Besides, after searching online, I discovered that it wasn’t like it was an impossibility. For example this Korean dentist that made the headlines is apparently 52 years old:
When Elaine accepted the position, my mother received us at the foundation campus’s arrival hall to give us a tour of the facilities. After an exchange of pleasantries, the tour started. Having worked for my mother’s organization before, I already knew the layout of the place like the back of my hand. They’ve expanded the facility and added some renovations, but most of the things remained as I remember it.
We dropped by the classrooms where several classes were ongoing.
“So this is where I will be teaching?” Elaine asked excitedly. It would seem like she was really motivated to start already.
My mother replied, “That’s right. We have kids from all over the city. We provide busses for transportation to and fro so that these kids won’t miss out just because of distance.”
“That’s so wonderful,” Elaine gushed.
As we continued the tour, I noticed that almost all the students here were minorities. Mostly Indian. It was the same as when I was volunteering back in the day. It seems like socioeconomic conditions haven’t changed much over the years.
“These here are our oldest students,” my mum chimed as we walked past another block, “They are about 17 to 18 years old. They are typically higher on our list of priorities because they will be facing O-Levels at the end of the year. For many of these kids, this is their only chance to graduate properly and transition into the world.”
“I see,” Elaine replied.
“There aren’t many senior students this year. There are only 2 classes of about 20 students each,” my mother said, “This why I need you, Elaine, a bunch of our teachers quit last year out of the blue, these kids have been left hanging, their future suddenly uncertain.”
“That’s horrible,” Elaine said, “Don’t worry, Kate. I aim to do my best work here.”
“That’s reassuring to hear,” my mother replied with a smile.
My mother then turned to me. “Son, have you found any interested parties from your school who might want to join us?”
I groaned. I knew I forgot something. “Damn it. I’m sorry ma. I totally forgot. I’ll do it first thing tomorrow.”
Elaine turned to us in interest. “Oh are you looking for more teachers, Kate?”
My mother nodded. “That’s right. Like I said, we lost quite a few last semester. Do you know anyone who might be interested?”
“Actually, yes!” Elaine said.
I raised an eyebrow at my wife. “Really?” I asked.
Elaine grinned at me. “Yup! Actually, Joanna and Claudia were both sorry to see me go. We got to talking and it turns out the two of them are feeling a little burnt out and are looking for change of pace.”
“Is that right?” I asked and stroked my chin. Joanna Fong and Claudia Lim are both teachers at the school I worked at, as well as their husbands Kenneth Wong and Wilson Teh. All of them are close friends of Elaine and I, having been colleagues for a great many years.
I had no idea Joanna and Claudia was getting burnt out. Kenneth and Wilson certainly didn’t say anything. I wonder if they even know.
“Those two are very capable and can teach multiple subjects. I can give them a call today and and get the ball rolling,” Elaine gushed.
My mother looked absolutely delighted. She clasped her hands in happiness. “Wonderful. Pass them my contact and have them call me. I can be very persuasive, as you know,” she said and gave me a wink.
We finished up the tour and my mother brought us to the faculty offices to meet other members of the team. The current teaching team consists of 11 teachers - 6 males and 5 females. I knew most of them, since they’ve been working in the foundation for a long time. Three of the female teachers are even my younger sisters.
“These three, I’m sure you already know,” my mother said as she brought us to the last three teachers after introducing the others along the way.
My younger sisters, Stephanie, Jacqueline, and Annabelle were all smiles and giggles as they excitedly came over to hug and welcome my wife, Elaine. My 3 younger sisters are aged 31, 29, and 27 respectively, as opposed to Elaine and I who are both 33. I have one more youngest sister, Priscilla, who did not take up the teaching proffession and lived apart from us.
I really don’t want to think about Priscilla right now.
Stephanie, Jacqueline, and Annabelle all joined my mother’s foundation when they graduated from uni and they’ve been teaching here ever since. Lately, my mother has been grooming them for management positions within the foundation, but it would seem they still like teaching more.
My wife and my sisters were already familiar with each other as we lived close to each other and see each other all the time. After some chit chat, the last two person to be introduced entered the faculty room. I went over to greet my two aunts, Julianna and Belinda, who are my mother’s younger sisters and who are members of the board of directors of this foundation like her. My mother, Katheryn, and my aunts, Julianna and Belinda also serves as co-principals for the school and manages its daily operations between them.
My aunts were ecstatic to welcome Elaine on board. Meanwhile my sisters started to nag me for not following my wife’s footsteps in coming over to the foundation.
In the end, the place looked like a good place for Elaine to have a fresh start, so I was happy for her.