by Zarah Sarne, Gr. 6 English teacher

When Odysseus left his family and kingdom to travel to Troy, he left the education of his son Telemachus to a trusted friend. For twenty years, Odysseus ventured to different lands under the mercy of the Greek gods. Upon his return, people celebrated his exploits, but little was known of the person who guided his son. In Telemachus’s formative years, Mentor was there to act as teacher, father, counselor and friend to a future king. His influence had greatly molded “the young man with princely ways” who welcomed Odysseus in his return to Ithaca. Xavier teachers have imbibed the role of “ Mentor”– not to raise future kings in the absence of their fathers, but to raise “men fully alive endowed with a passion for justice” to benefit society.

The two decades of Mentor’s work may be too hard to beat, but it doesn’t take that long to impact a boy’s life. That impact usually starts on a Monday during Mentoring class. At twelve noon when my co-teachers gather in the workroom to engage in a hearty conversation, prepare for the next period’s lesson, have lunch, or give make-up quizzes to students, the classic question would always arise and demand everybody’s attention, “Anong gagawin natin sa mentoring ngayon?” This will be followed with an exhausted teacher’s sigh, “Hay mentoring.”

But then like a muse that inspires, one teacher would just share a good idea that she had been thinking about during the weekend. An attentive teacher would back her up with a complementing activity, while another would choose to remain quiet until asked on what he would do. Group talk in class, group talk in the corridor, group talk in the canteen with ice cream to match, film viewing, games, games, games—the ideas just keep on coming.

I remember one teacher blurting out a few minutes past two, “Maybe I could bring my class to the field, this looks like a fine day.” After a forty-minute mentoring session, that same teacher came back complaining about an aching hipbone. He talked about a game of tag with his class and at the same time consulted a co-teacher on whether he should give one nice boy a green slip for cursing during the game. The boy had to run after him, but he chased in vain. The teacher was tired and in pain, but he could still afford to laugh, probably from the thought of a forty-year-old man outrunning his twelve-year-old boys.

Mentoring has its demands, but it definitely has a lot of priceless rewards. I’ve never seen my boys so happy as when I played the monkey wearing high-heeled shoes in the game monkey-in-the middle, nor have I seen them so absorbed in a conversation when we talked about each other’s hobbies and trips back when we were all younger. Although I often run out of ideas in mentoring class, the stories that other mentors have to tell just keep you challenged. The unexpected reactions of your mentees just keep you inspired. In mentoring, you end up getting more than giving. You’re teaching, but then you’re doing it in an entirely different process. Sometimes, just being “there” for them is enough goal for the day. But then come the priceless learning moments– when the boys open up to your guidance and begin to get it. That’s when you truly feel your role as mentor.