Big Things Grow by Sarah Donnelley

Author:Sarah Donnelley
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Allen & Unwin
Published: 2022-07-09T00:00:00+00:00

The layers of loss and grief here lie so deep for Community. I draw so much strength from the people I work with. One of those people is Temicka. She appears confident and sure of herself, but is a deep thinker and often doubts herself. She started working as a student learning support officer in my first year, and her grandmother Aunty Brenda was the language teacher. She has recently returned after living and working for a year in Broken Hill.

Her enthusiasm for making the educational experience of our students better is energising. I had the privilege of sitting with Temicka and Daphne one day, as Daphne opened up to us about what she was struggling with. Temicka listened, and she shared some of her own experiences. Her grief, her loss, her boyfriend dramas, her family situation. But she doesn’t let the hardships define her or drag her down. She is honest when times are challenging, but she stands proud and determined, reflecting on choices she can make to make things better for herself and those around her.

Temicka is studying to become a teacher. I have no doubt she will be successful, because she is a natural. She skilfully intertwines her own experience linking to content, to make it relevant and meaningful to students. Before participating in training we completed about suicide awareness, I checked in with Temicka. She lost her brother to suicide, and I wanted to make sure she knew she didn’t have to do anything she felt uncomfortable with and could leave at any time. She did not leave. The experiences and stories she shared were raw, and wise. She was vulnerable, but she was solutions focused. I felt proud as the training facilitator said to me after, ‘She’s got it, you know.’ Oh, I know, I thought to myself. My job is to make sure she knows, and to help her on that journey. Her experience, her understanding of loss and grief, her recognition of trauma and her pride for her culture mean she is going to make a wonderful teacher, and students in communities like ours need to see more teachers just like her.

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