novicewriter01

[novicewriter01]

[novicewriter01]

Happiest Moment

A teacher from a small village in Macedonia asked her student, “what is your happiest moment?��� The student smiled but could not hide his tears and left the question unanswered. The teacher did not understand as this was a routine question, she was asking all her students in her English class. She was from Macedonia and knew all her students well. The only student who arrived recently in the town was Ben who she asked this question attempting to know him better. It was his first day, so the teacher did not press him as she thought he was adjusting to the class and his new town. A few days passed by and Ben was always quiet, never trying to make friends or being active in class. Ben’s dissatisfaction was apparent, though he was a very closed person, avoiding eye contact with the teacher.

It was a sports day where teachers, pupils, and parents came together to watch and organize a competitive sport for pupils to take part in. As the teacher knew all the parents, she was eager to get to know Ben’s parents. Ben’s mother was present as it was mandatory. The teacher approached Ben’s mother and introduced herself. Ben’s mother seemed very outgoing and social person, which made the teacher comfortable asking questions about Ben and his passive mood. Ben’s mother was surprised and assured the teacher that everything was fine to the best of her knowledge. To the teacher, this was somewhat unusual since she had extensive experience with kids and would know if everything was well. The teacher was haunted by the incident when Ben cried when she asked him about his happiest moments. She thought in her mind, “if everything is fine, how could Ben avoid the teacher ever since she asked her about his happiest moments.”

The teacher was not convinced and decided to take a different approach. It was 9 a.m. and the first thing teacher asked the students to do was to write a short story about the happiest moments in their lives. She asked the pupils that they should hide their names and make the submissions anonymous as this might have helped Ben write what was on his mind. To her surprise, she received the stories and was quickly able to determine what was bothering him for this long. Ben’s story was quite evident. A part of Ben’s story was all the teacher needed to understand his problem. The part read, “my happiest moment was before my parents’ divorce, when both my father and mother cared for me, and we lived in the same house. I miss those days.” Ben’s story informed the teacher about the devastating impact of the family break-up on the child, the only innocent victim.

[novicewriter01]

[novicewriter01]

In Search of a Home

It was not long ago that I left my brother’s house because I was a burden on him. Although I paid rent and helped with household work, I always felt like I needed my own home. It is almost impossible in Canada for an immigrant to buy a house, not at least with a minimum wage job. For one, I needed a good-paying job to afford my rent (now I do). Second, even if I have enough money to cover rent, it is only a dream to have saved enough money for the down payment. That is not all, even if I magically had a saving lined up, I still need a good credit history to qualify for a mortgage. This is often incredibly hard to have for newcomers. That’s the reason why I live so far away from my current job which is in Vancouver. I must commute to work every morning for 2 hours. I tried many times to find a house to rent near my work, but rent is so unaffordable in Vancouver that I didn’t even bother checking the place in person. I come from a war-torn country, grew up in a different country as a refugee. My family fled our country when war broke out with no money or friends. Thankfully, we were accepted as refugees and given a home to stay. My father only had a hand-produced carpet with him which he sold in the first few months of our arrival in the new country to make ends meet. However, he quickly found a job and was able to buy a home later. We lived in 1 bedroom apartment with my 7 siblings. We had enough space. I was only 6 months old when we moved to that country. I went to kindergarten, finished high school, and then was able to get into one of the best universities in the country on a scholarship. Through my undergraduate program, I was able to transfer to Canada and continue my studies in one of the best universities in the world. I was very happy when I arrived in Canada as I thought my problems would go away. I am about to finish my degree now, and I already found a job even before graduation. I love my job very much. It is a job that many of my peers dream about. It pays well. I am now faced with the much more difficult task of securing a place I can call home and raise my children. I cannot get married unless I have a place of my own. In Canada, especially Vancouver, even Canadian-born youngsters have a hard time buying their own apartments. Why would that be is a great question to ask, no wonder? It is because the housing market in BC is flooded with foreign money that jacked up the housing prices. It has a tremendous impact on ordinary Canadians, like me, who are fresh out of university. But I never lose hope as Canada is where dreams come true.

[novicewriter01]

[novicewriter01]

Untold Realities of a Homeless

“What is home?” asked David from a stranger in Burrard Street who posed a rather usual question asked of homeless people. David is a former cook who has been living on the streets of Vancouver for the past several years. He is a fun and entertaining person. He sings near SkyTrain stations and collects money from people who like his singing or from people who want to donate to a mid-aged man. David has no official income and thus cannot afford to rent a place.

David has experienced a traumatic event in his life, broke up with his partner, and lost his job. He also has a criminal record due to his past relationship with his partner. He lived with his partner for a few years and was left on the street when the fight broke up. His life became miserable, and he developed a mental health issue which resulted in his job loss. Thus, ever since the event, he wanders around the streets of Vancouver to make ends meet and is forced to sleep on the streets with his dog.

One day, a stranger walks up to him asks, “why don’t you just get a job?”

 The stranger seemed interested in David’s situation, and they both had a discussion. The stranger was genuinely interested in David’s story as she always wondered why homeless people don’t just get a job and live normally like others instead of subjecting themselves to cold and often rainy streets.

David, who has all the time in the world, started explaining his reasoning.

He said, “do you think I can get a job?”

The stranger replied, “why not, do you have any skills?”

David said he was a great cook before losing all his home and belongings.

Stranger laughingly said, “oh my gosh, there is a shortage of cooks in Canada. I am sure you would get a job easily if you tried?”

This reply gave David no comfort as someone who had tried tirelessly to find a job after his breakup. David questioned the stranger in an attempt to understand ordinary people’s flawed notion about the homeless that they are lazy.

David asked the stranger, “do you have a job?”

The stranger replied, “of course, I do which is why my rent is paid on time and my food is taken care of.”

David continues, “what were the requirements of a job when you applied?”

The stranger replied, “hmm, I guess I submitted my resume and filled out the application form, and attended an interview.”

David hastily replied, “exactly, first you had a resume in which you had previous jobs with no breaks in between. Most Importantly though, you had an address, a home, and a phone number to include in the application form. What is home? Do you think a homeless person would have all that luxury, not to mention the fact that you have a home to properly groom and sanitize yourself? How do you think I would fulfill those requirements?”

Stranger strangely looking at David, “I have never thought of that.”