You remember the school days don’t you? Well I was sent to a Catholic Convent for both and primary and secondary education and as with such institutions, we had uniforms and strict codes about what could you worn in your hair, how long your fringe could be etc… I suppose from this brief description you’d draw the conclusion that equality and discipline were the core rules of the convent and that left little room for students to ‘express’ themselves as ‘different’.
But honestly you are mistaken. I agree it sounds strict but I never had a problem with it. Children are different from adults, they aren’t yet grown up enough to take on one too many distractions. The reason why the convent was strict about uniforms, hygiene and presentability of a lady were all for good reasons – keep the child focused on what was inside and not the superficial. It kept students minds on books, studies and academic achievements instead of what which lipstick to wear, if she had the more expensive watch from you….- the superficial.
But the point I’m also trying to make here is even though the nuns were strict, it didn’t at all deter us from having our own personalities or little groups. In my group I was the neat/paranoid freak about underachievement and also the ribbon girl because my mother would neatly tie up my long hair and complete it with a ribbon – well the only colours allowed were white, blue, brown and black but by the end of my school years I’ve had a box full of beautiful ribbons that came in those colours. Another was the sporty one because she excelled in tracks (a doctor now!), another a domestic Goddess who was right at home in home economics (perfect wife and mother now) and lastly the one who was the bookworm (an electrical engineer)
And as much as we all had our own niche and our own things, it was clearly the nuns who had impacted us from inside. I’ve always been fond of animals, that is something that came naturally to me. But my love for green was actually instilled by a love sweet old nun named Sister Fidelis. She was my English teacher but she swirled the language lessons around a green theme (don’t ask me how but she made 8 year old kids adore recycling) and this is how sustainable living has been instilled in me even until today.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Sister Fidelis who even at a period of time when going green was hardly heard of, fought for the Earth by nurturing her future – the children who have today grown up to lead that same cause she fought for so many years ago.
I wasn’t born a green baby, I learnt to be one at a convent and I intend of having a green baby – how about you?
