On a recent visit to India a few close friends sat around reminiscing about our college days; invariably the conversation moved to Sister Lucy, the unforgettable Principal of Loreto College. Sister Lucy epitomized everything brilliant about parochial education. She was incredibly strict but also unbelievably smart, witty, kind and a beautiful person who strove to make a complete human being out of every student she came in contact with. Sister would often regale us with real-life stories before beginning the day's lesson and what she shared the day she came to class, not quite her vivacious self, struck a chord with a room full of young, inexperienced teachers-in-training. That morning Sister had gone into the teacher's lounge for her routine cup of coffee. She looked everywhere in the room but could not find the modest cup that she had used every day for the past 10 years to drink out of. No one ever touched "her" cup - so where could it have disappeared? As she took a disappointed sip out of another cup, she caught a glimpse of a new student-teacher, using it. Sister was relieved but somewhat bothered by this rather innocuous act but the very next minute she felt sadder and angrier than ever before at herself. She explained to us that at that very moment she felt like a complete failure because 40 years ago when she had decided to become a nun, she had renounced everything worldly and the fact that she felt so attached to an insignificant coffee cup, showed that her life's work had been tainted and squashed. The story was a confession of sorts and by sharing it with us Sister was making sure that such a transgression would never occur again.
Even at 21, and at the pinnacle of our materialistic lives, we were touched by this simple reflection. To be able to see one's flaws, however small, is a trait of the highest order. Even though Sister Lucy had given up everything and committed her life to serving others, she felt that there was room for improvement and strove to make herself an even better person daily. How incredibly different from the way most of us lead our lives --- we mused then and now!
And after all these years, we concluded that it wasn't the most well-dressed teachers we worshipped or the most well-read or even the most well-versed but little old Sister Lucy, whose genuine desire to be and let others be sincere human beings, who left the greatest imprint on young, impressionable minds. Sister Lucy, a humble servant of God was a real Rock Star!
The above article is lovingly dedicated to the brilliant educators who teach from the heart! Here's wishing you a "Lucy in the Sky" kind of school year!
