Report of 20 May '07
Hello from happy land!
Naren's results are here. He has done very well, and averaged 81%, which is considered very good in his rigorous course of study (Indian School Certificate Exam). His subjects were English, Second Language - his is Spanish, History/Civics/Geography, Science, Environmental Education, Maths and Art. When I saw him studying 11 hours a day, I hoped for such a result and knew he was capable of it - so we are all very happy, esp Naren!
You know, I am starting to look at time spent w/ the kids (and their academics) as an investment. Had we left Naren to take the consequences of his actions of hanging out w/ non-studying friends and blowing off academics, he likely would not have seen exactly how much he could accomplish grade-wise, would not know the satisfaction of a good job well-done, and would not get the morale-boosting phenomenon of excellent grades and consequent accolades. So, we kept Naren a bit away from his non-studying buddy, arranged for tutors, Scott sat w/ him and set practice tests; in the meantime, nutrition and exercise were routinely seen to, as was the need for regular breaks. All this (parental involvement) is par for the course during exam time in India.
My sister Anu's son, Vikram, has passed his 12th grade exams also. In this moment, I am sorry to report that my brother Manu's son, Sudhir, did not pass 12th grade chemistry. We are looking at other course options for Sudhir, who is easily the sharpest of all the nephews and nieces, but who has been derailed by many influences - not the least of which is the loss of his father.
I am officially on vacation, but have seen patients ad infinitum. Our maid's mother came w/ the complaint of persistent nasal congestion and I saw her at the flat, as I have no nearby clinic to go to. It is very easy for me to rely on the history and physical exam, as my patients simply cannot afford expensive tests. So I prescribed some meds, and explained to the lady what was going on w/ her; as our maid left, her mother explained that she was very worried about her as she is widowed and struggling to raise her 2 kids. Often, with my patients, issues of poverty compound and complicate the illness.
The boys tutor 2 young brothers named Tamilselvan and Vignesh. Their mother, a housekeeping employee in our apt complex, came to me last week and delightedly told me that both boys had passed their exams and qualified to move on to the next grade. On hearing this, another maid in the vicinity (very few conversations here are private) asked if she could send her kids for tutoring as well. But of course. Naren and Navin, and their friends, are accomplishing great things here, including developing the ease of sharing their gifts w/ those much less fortunate than themselves.
We were extremely privileged to get together w/ our dear friend, David Gere, over lunch. As David's brother, Richard, has been in a flap over kissing an actress here, David asked as we hugged if we could kiss in public and I laughed out loud. I like hugs, and in spite of the lack of physical contact between the 2 genders here, I hug visiting friends w/ glee. Naren and Navin joined us as well, and all enjoyed David's company, as usual - replete w/ teasing, much laughing, eating, and David's grand command of the Indian culture. Naren noticed that the waiter's jaw dropped when David ordered in Tamil. David and Peter are wonderful parents, and inspirations to us in more ways than one. We were also fortunate to see our friend, Desmond Nazareth, and all enjoyed his easy presence as well. Des is a brilliant engineer/film-maker/entrepreneur, and a fascinating conversationalist w/ all ages. Today is my nephew Aditya's b'day, and we will get together w/ my sister and family, brother and family, and my brilliant scientist aunt, Indira. It is lovely to see, and get along with, family.
I'd better wind up. Hope all are well. For those who'd like to email Naren, his id is narenweiss@hotmail.com.
"When I can do no longer bear to think of the victims of broken homes, I begin to think of the victims of intact ones." - Peter De Vries
Unw -
R
Naren's results are here. He has done very well, and averaged 81%, which is considered very good in his rigorous course of study (Indian School Certificate Exam). His subjects were English, Second Language - his is Spanish, History/Civics/Geography, Science, Environmental Education, Maths and Art. When I saw him studying 11 hours a day, I hoped for such a result and knew he was capable of it - so we are all very happy, esp Naren!
You know, I am starting to look at time spent w/ the kids (and their academics) as an investment. Had we left Naren to take the consequences of his actions of hanging out w/ non-studying friends and blowing off academics, he likely would not have seen exactly how much he could accomplish grade-wise, would not know the satisfaction of a good job well-done, and would not get the morale-boosting phenomenon of excellent grades and consequent accolades. So, we kept Naren a bit away from his non-studying buddy, arranged for tutors, Scott sat w/ him and set practice tests; in the meantime, nutrition and exercise were routinely seen to, as was the need for regular breaks. All this (parental involvement) is par for the course during exam time in India.
My sister Anu's son, Vikram, has passed his 12th grade exams also. In this moment, I am sorry to report that my brother Manu's son, Sudhir, did not pass 12th grade chemistry. We are looking at other course options for Sudhir, who is easily the sharpest of all the nephews and nieces, but who has been derailed by many influences - not the least of which is the loss of his father.
I am officially on vacation, but have seen patients ad infinitum. Our maid's mother came w/ the complaint of persistent nasal congestion and I saw her at the flat, as I have no nearby clinic to go to. It is very easy for me to rely on the history and physical exam, as my patients simply cannot afford expensive tests. So I prescribed some meds, and explained to the lady what was going on w/ her; as our maid left, her mother explained that she was very worried about her as she is widowed and struggling to raise her 2 kids. Often, with my patients, issues of poverty compound and complicate the illness.
The boys tutor 2 young brothers named Tamilselvan and Vignesh. Their mother, a housekeeping employee in our apt complex, came to me last week and delightedly told me that both boys had passed their exams and qualified to move on to the next grade. On hearing this, another maid in the vicinity (very few conversations here are private) asked if she could send her kids for tutoring as well. But of course. Naren and Navin, and their friends, are accomplishing great things here, including developing the ease of sharing their gifts w/ those much less fortunate than themselves.
We were extremely privileged to get together w/ our dear friend, David Gere, over lunch. As David's brother, Richard, has been in a flap over kissing an actress here, David asked as we hugged if we could kiss in public and I laughed out loud. I like hugs, and in spite of the lack of physical contact between the 2 genders here, I hug visiting friends w/ glee. Naren and Navin joined us as well, and all enjoyed David's company, as usual - replete w/ teasing, much laughing, eating, and David's grand command of the Indian culture. Naren noticed that the waiter's jaw dropped when David ordered in Tamil. David and Peter are wonderful parents, and inspirations to us in more ways than one. We were also fortunate to see our friend, Desmond Nazareth, and all enjoyed his easy presence as well. Des is a brilliant engineer/film-maker/entrepreneur, and a fascinating conversationalist w/ all ages. Today is my nephew Aditya's b'day, and we will get together w/ my sister and family, brother and family, and my brilliant scientist aunt, Indira. It is lovely to see, and get along with, family.
I'd better wind up. Hope all are well. For those who'd like to email Naren, his id is narenweiss@hotmail.com.
"When I can do no longer bear to think of the victims of broken homes, I begin to think of the victims of intact ones." - Peter De Vries
Unw -
R
posted by Renu Weiss at
9:20 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home