I am happy that you are following a path I'd prayed to have my son follow. The little education I got before my parents were deceased could only afford me a place in lower cadre administrative work. I am ready to sacrifice whatever it takes to see you actualise your dreams. Be rest assured that you are getting the that is required to make you stand out in your school career day by tomorrow. Mike assured his son.
The smiles on the face of Ojo could melt heart. His joy was full with the assurance he was getting from his father.
Just as Mike had promised, he got all the items for Ojo the following day and all were set for the career day.
On the career day, the sight of the younger version of virtually all the high earning professions abound from the entrance of the school. Uniforms of a four star Generals in the Army, Medical Doctors, Engineer, Bankers and other members of professions in the same category of prestige are the camouflages that flooded the premises of the school.
Each pupil was given the opportunity to stand in front of the audience to introduce himself with the career choice he made and the reason behind his choice. No single pupil showed preference for farming, primary and secondary school teaching or creative industry such as tailoring, shoemaking and so on. This was expected because these professions earned below the median in the curve.
The teacher that welcomed the invited dignitaries joked about what prompted the pupils not to wish to become a teacher.
So, none of you is willing to become a teacher ...
The statement didn't elicit any response from the pupils. They only gazed at one another wondering why the teacher was surprised at such a decision going by the living standards of teachers in their immediate society. The career day was a success. It was indeed a memorable event.
The ambition of Ojo to become a renowned Doctor was becoming stronger each day.
He prepared towards it by studying hard over the years to emerge as one of the best students from his high school.
He immediately registered for the university entrance examination. He wrote the examination and was getting ready for his university education. He was optimistic and believed in his ability to get an offer for his preferred course on merit.
The news of the release of the admission list was greeted with much celebration and enthusiasm. He immediately collected money from his father to get a scratch card to assess the examination portal and find out his status of admission.
Ojo returned home with a sad face. Holding a piece of paper on one hand and one of the pairs of his slippers, which had been cut as a result of hitting his foot on a stone earlier, on the other. His face was covered with sweat and the colour of his eyes was visibly red.
I have been offered Physics Education. He said disappointedly while handing over the piece of paper to his father.
The paper was the printed copy of the admission letter. In it was written the course offered him and the fees. Other information included procedure to follow in accepting or rejecting the offer and the stated ultimatum to start and complete the registration process.
What's your next line of action? Mike asked.
In his reply, Ojo preferred to reject the offer.
I will keep trying to improve on my application until I am admitted to study for a degree in Medicine.
This did not go down well with Mike. He advised him to accept the offer instead and should continue to apply for an offer to study his dream course.
It took Mike about a week to convince Ojo to follow his advice.
Ok Daddy. I will accept it and see how far I can go with it. I pray that the willingness to study will be there. This is not my passion.
Ojo reluctantly accepted to follow his father's advice.
You may turn out to love the course. God does his thing his own ways. His ways may not necessarily be ours. He is supreme. Just register and see what God has for you.
Mike went spiritual as he concluded his conversation with Ojo.
Ojo accepted the offer and subsequently registered for the programme.
While in year one, he gave a shot at getting an offer for Medicine but couldn't get it. By year two, he was already loving the course due to two reasons; his excellent performance in his year one results and the continuous orientation he was getting about how noble the teaching profession is.
The reward of teachers is in heaven.
The above statement was popular among the people in attempts to describe the rewards of impacting knowledge and raising several generations of students.
He soon accepted what he considered as his destiny and was planning his future along the line of teaching. One major thing that worked for Ojo was his dedicated approaches to getting any task done.
He studied hard and got a job of teaching with the government upon graduation.
It took him just three years in service to be crowned the teacher of the year in the state. The award came with car gifts and monetary incentives. His name was everywhere in the media. He was invited by many media houses for interviews. In one of such interviews, he advised students and parents about making a choice of career.
I had wanted to become a Medical Doctor. It was my childhood dream. As my destiny would have it, I later became what I will refer to as an accidental teacher. However, I am proud of becoming a teacher today. The recognition, the prestige and other lovely things that I have enjoyed in the last three years culminating into being awarded the best teacher in the state today is fascinating.
It's good for every child to have an ambition. Do whatever you can to achieve your ambitions. In any case like mine where there is a little twist of fate from what you wished for, try and put in your best wherever you find yourself. From an accidental teacher, I am now a proud and fulfilled teacher. You can be the best and live the life you'd wished in whatever profession you found yourself in.