Angel's Voice

Watching cities and towns fleeting passed from the airplane window like a myriad of tiny matchboxes, I knew that I was leaving everything behind in my home country and going to a new country that I had never gone to before. When I first came to America, I did not know anyone and did not understand anything. As I was starring at the silky blue sky, I prayed, trying to hear an angel』s voice from heaven that would guide me on my way.
I remember that I lived in my uncle』s house, but that was a house, not a home. My uncle was my guardian but not my parent. By the first glance of my uncle in the airport, I could see the word 「apathy」 clearly written on my uncle』s face. At that moment, I hated living in America, learning English, and dealing with my uncle. Because of my heavy Chinese accent, sneering from classmates continues to build upon me in school, yet I have to face my uncle』s verbosities at home.
Just when I felt hopeless of life and wanted to give up, I met my ESL (English Second Language) teacher Mrs. Weatherford. That was a day when I did not understand my math homework and chose not to do it. After listening to an hour of my uncle』s strident scolding, my head was about to explode. The next morning, I arrived at school with a blank sheet of homework paper. Mrs. Weatherford noticed me rather than me noticing her.
「What』s wrong?」 Her voice sounded like an angel』s voice above my head when I was walking in the school hallway without a specific target.
「I no write home work.」 I answered in broken English.
An ear-to-ear smile floated on her face as she asked, 「Why not? Do you not understand the problem? Do you want me to help you?」
I did not reply back this time because I did not know what to say at that very moment. Even as an elementary school student, I understood that Mrs. Weatherford did not have the responsibility to tutor me on my homework because her job was to teach me English, but she still offered to help me on my math homework.
As Mrs. Weatherford』s meticulous handwriting crawled on my paper line-by-line, I saw the solution, I saw the hope, and I saw the future. She explained every single English word to me and showed me the reasons behind every mathematic step. I believed that even the most fastidious math teacher in the world would not find a mistake on my paper. Throughout my years in elementary school, Mrs. Weatherford taught me not only English but also math, science, history, and the courage to face real life.
「Life is always arduous, but I will face it with you.」 Mrs. Weatherford added at the end of the tutoring. 「By the way, arduous means hard to accomplish.」
She was my only light source in ten thousand miles of darkness; she was my only source of water in countless centuries of drought. In my dreams and fantasies, I would wonder if she was an angel sent to me by the immortal God. If she is not an angel, why does her angel-like voice appear every time when I want to escape from new challenges?
The year after I graduated from elementary school, Mrs. Weatherford also retired from teaching. Although I do not know where she lives now, I know her soul will be standing beside me whenever I face arduous challenges in my life, so I will not be afraid. Looking at my Calculus BC homework that is a hundred times more elusive than elementary school math, I would sit down at my desk and try to solve each equation because I do not want to disappoint my angel. Even though Mrs. Weatherford cannot always be there, her faith in me gives me the courage to always try no matter what the challenge is. I could hear the angel』s voice telling me, 「Life is always arduous, but I will face it with you.」