Students Can Surprise You, part 1

Everyone has his/her own road to travel.  So interesting really are the twists and turns for whatever reason confronting the billions of us.  America for sure is a complex nation offering a myriad of opportunities that cross our lives.  And for those who arrive from another land, it can be a daunting experience for the unplanned adventure.  Yet, it has worked out for most of the millions here, and I’d like to share some stories from some of my international students who have shared their stories with me.  Here are just three of six. 

Isaiah 49:11  “I will make all My mountains a road, and My highways will be raised up.” 

These short accounts were expressed to me by students in Miami, FL.  As an instructor in the Miami Dade Adult Education and Community College  [1970s - 90s]  a few stories stand out and worthy of note.  These six  students were from Vietnam, Cuba, Brazil, Cambodia Zaire,  and Miami itself.  They are stories of hope, struggle and coincidence, if there really is such a thing.   

Li was a Vietnamese student attending Miami Dade Community College.  Having been in America for 6 years and probably in her early 30s, she was enrolled in one of my required social science courses.  This was a typical class of mostly poor and working class, all college loan supported minority students of Miami.  Of course I mean minority sociologically but not in numbers as our student population was all ethnic and minority students.  In fact, Miami Dade has more international students that any other college in the United States.  Li was a good student, disciplined and very conscientious.  One day after class, she was engrossed on her computer at her desk .  Mind you, all students in this class were poor or close to it as according to federal government statistics.  I decided to strike up a conversation and wondered what she might be in to.  Nosy I guess.  “Oh,” she replied .  “I’m checking our mortgage requirements.”  Again mind you, I assumed she lived in the projects.

“Mortgage?” I responded.

 “Yes.” she said.  “We are selling our house and buying another in our community.”

“Really?” To my surprise.  “You need any help?”

“Oh no.  We are selling our home for $900,000 and moving intro the other side of our community which is more fitting to our situation.”

“$900,000!  How much is your new home?

“1.8 Million” she calmly stated.

“May I ask what kind of work you and you husband do?”  

“I’m not married, but divorced with 3 children.”  But she looked at me like I was stupid.  I’m Vietnamese, don’t  don’t you know what I do for a living?  “I own 3 nail salons in Miami, Coral Gables and Miami Beach.”

Some how, I don’t know how, a path was made for her with little obstacles or obstructions.

Deuteronomy 27:18  “Cursed is he who misleads a blind person on the road.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’”

 The adult education center in Hialeah where I also taught had an outreach program at a privately run inner city located drug rehab center.  I worked at both sites as a GED instructor. Anna - 18,  was a smart, friendly, cute, nicely presentable girl from Hialeah of Cuban and Puerto Rican origin.  Sure had a good future ahead of her.  She attended my GED class in Hialeah but dropped out for some reason.  A few months later while teaching the same class at the drug rehab center, low and behold, guess who shows up in class.  I was in shock.  “What happened Anna?  Why are you here?”  She was essentially incarcerated in this minimum security prison solely for drug addicts and alcoholics.  

“I messed up Mr. B.  I got involve with people I shouldn’t have. Cocaine.  We held up a 7-11.  I had a gun in my hand facing the clerk.  I was pregnant at the time.  I freaked out.  I said to myself in an instant, ‘what am I doing?’  I dropped the gun and when the police arrived, I gave myself up.”

This was essentially a minimum security facility located in the heart of liberty city, a notorious ghetto.  If anyone decided to leave, they would immediately be apprehended and at the same time face the dangers of the neighborhood.  No one ever walked away.  She was placed there because of her lack of prior arrests and drug involvement.  She finally received her GED, finished the program and returned to her child.  I pray she is OK now. She was such a smart kid in a case of the blind leading the blind astray.  

Isaiah 57:14  And it will be said,
“Build up, build up, prepare the way,
Remove every obstacle out of the way of My people.”

 God sometimes makes roads where you would never expect.   He helps you move on to where you should be unbeknownst to you.  He meets needs through unintended consequences.  In one of my Adult Education classes in ESL [English as a second language], Luis, one of my Brazilian students,  was an aspiring American in his mid 20s.  Problem was, he was in Miami and could not learn English.  He spoke Portuguese and Spanish only.  He approached me in the little English he knew at the time.

“Teacher.  I cannot learn English here in Miami.   Every one speaks Spanish.”

“Why don’t you move to another city?” I replied, knowing English class was not enough.  Remember your high school Spanish or French class?

The problem was, he was reluctant to move as he was getting paid under the table through his connections and was not confident it could happen elsewhere.  I mentioned a city of nice people where everyone speaks English, Minneapolis  and a city that follows the rules.  No way!  He treasured his job.  

A couple of years later, my wife and I took a trip to Switzerland for a belated honeymoon.  Happy to be there and hungering for another culture, we also hungered for some food that afternoon.  The trouble was we apparently were in a touristy neighborhood and all restaurants packed that day.  To my dismay, the only solution for us was enter into a McDonald's on this Zurich street corner.  “Darn!  I travel 5,000 miles just to eat at a McDonald’s!” I blurted out to my wife.  We reluctantly entered and low an behold who do we see munching on a ‘big mac’ himself, none other than my student from Brazil, Luis.  

After a few greetings and chit chats, I asked of course how he could speak such good English.  And I mean good English.  He told me that he decided to travel to Europe, beginning in Portugal to visit some relatives. Moving on to other countries as most young people do, he reminded me of the fact that everyone he encountered, including the populace of each country spoke English.  It was also the language of choice for all his friends.   It didn’t take long for him to master the language and of course thanks to the foundation of the basics from his ESL professor.  

Here are three stories of God making a road for my female Asian student, not God but the blind  leading the blind as to my female Cuban student, and God building up by removing obstacles for my Brazilian student as he moved on in life.  Three more: a Cambodian, an Afro American and African Zaire student had some interesting stories to tell in the next episode.