mrs. bau the beloved

mrs. bautista was our world history teacher during 4th year hs. we fondly called her mrs. bau. she was also a guidance counselor. sounds "normal"? well, she was an elderly cancer survivor, she walked with crutches, didn't really need the money, but she taught anyway.

she said her salary wasn't even enough for her daily taxi rides to and from work - or should i call it passion in her case? she said she wanted to exert her last days making a difference. so selfless!

one rainy day, she was walking with a male teacher when she slipped on the wet floor. sir caught her but accidentally grabbed her breast. alarmed and ashamed, he immediately let go and so poor mrs. bau fell on the floor. sir apologized for grabbing her boob  and for letting her fall down.

mrs. bau, in pain, said, "bat mo ko binitawan?!? ok lang yun! sana sinalo mo na lang ako! medyas lang to o! o! o!" and she mashed the rolled medyas in her bra. hahaha! that was mrs. bau showing humor despite pain.

i didn't have much recollection of my world history, but i could never forget her stories of aliens, mines, her endearing pronunciation of machu picchu, papyrus, totem poles. and there was one story i super love... the day she walked without crutches after being summoned to walk by a healer priest. faith, sister!

mrs. bau died a few years ago. no doubt, she achieved her goal of making a difference. she did what she loved to do - educating her students. she did it the best way she can with no regard for suffering. 

how do i make a difference? 

how do i end indifference?