The Story of the Cheat (Ang Sabi sabi at Kuro kuro sa Santa Rosa)

New Girl Bagong Salta

A young lady came out of the crowd were the teachers were all round about. Her name was Cynthia. 

It has been four or so years since she has graduated. A lot of her batchmates were alumni of this school. And of the people she knew. She always put them in high regards. They were sophisticated, knowledgeable and leaps and beyond above most of their peers. She just know this are the people she had to be teaching.

Thus it was her prerogative to try her skills with this school. 

It was hard at first. 

She decided to postpone her job search to her licensure. Upon passing her licensure, she gave out her resume right off the bat. But weeks turned into months, and calls did not roll in. She seems not to be destined to be a teacher of that school. Or maybe there is just no openings  yet.  

So she move on and opened her door for other listings. She rummaged the nearby schools for openings, Public or Private. Calls did roll through. She passed interviews. She made it into demo and was just waiting for a call back for confirmation for some.

With all haggling that came with her job search, an important call came. 

"Hello Ms. Cynthia, Are you available for next wednesday?" 

It was all that she needed - a chance. 

As a teacher, she has expertise focuses on Filipino. She never really great in it. She always felt that the subject was not her liking.  Nor was she ever a voracious reader in the first place. It just so happen that it was what she believe is the easiest. 

Its her own language after all. And so far no one has doubted her. It was in the end, a noble move.

That Wednesday, she saw a lot of other hopefuls wanting to become teachers. She was afraid. They all seems overly ready for the job. They were beautiful slacks and well ironed suits, some looked actual veterans of teaching.  She felt inadequate with her school uniform and her lack of experience. She nervous beyond relief. 

She was last to came of the bunch and thus given the distinction to be called last. Within the ruckus in hallway, it seems to her that there were opening for two slots in the school - one for Filipino, one for Math. They were ten of them in the hallway seated in plastic pedestal. The cacophonous practices of common interview question spread in the area. 

How do you see yourself in five years? Why did you use this profession and why did you picked that subject as your tenure? How would you deal with difficult students and difficult issues in the school settings. The basics and all. 

As the day went one, one by one - each of the jobseekers were called and gone home. Slowly the once loud area had gone more silent by the hour. 

As the guy was cold,  left another young lady, standing in front of her with her hands in the railing looking afar. Unlike the others, she was rather silent. She did not practice nor seems to take the interview  as serious as other. And she too, decided to go plain. She wore a simple white blazer and a simple black slack. It also looked like one of those left used in ROTC. But she does look that she does not mind. She have a blank stare in her. Cynthia do not readily know if this is a sign that she really knows her stuff or just equally afraid as her.  But she looked calmer and relaxed. That was important. She envies her at the moment. She knows were she was going, while Cynthia's  internalized weakness is getting the best of her.

It caught her attention. 

"Are you alright?", she asked politely, as she stood closer to sit in the pedestal 

"Oh, I'm sorry. Just have butterflies in my stomach. Don't mind me.", Cynthia replied while still agitated. "Can I ask you what is major? It is just so silent here anyhow."