The Teacher and Her Student, 45 Years On

Miss Norjan was my form teacher in Form 1. She continued teaching us in Form 2 and Form 3.

An honour it was for me today to give a speech in appreciation of Miss Norjan, at the MEXSA (Methodist [Parit Buntar] Ex-Students Association) high tea with Miss Norjan and Deepavali celebrations.

I opened my speech by saying that unlike last time when I gave a speech in honour of Principals Mr. Subramaniam and Mr. Ling, this time I do not need to read from a script, because it is easy to speak from my heart… because, “Miss Norjan, I feel close to you.”

I reminisced the fond memories that my classmates and I had with her.

Azizah Mahmud who came all the way from Parit Buntar today, remembers Miss Norjan teaching Home Science, and Azizah learned how to make kuih sagu dalam bungkus daun pisang.

Teoh Kheng Huat remembers that after our Industrial Arts class, we boys got invited by Miss Norjan to the Home Science class to eat the beehun goreng the girls cooked.

Katie remembers Miss Norjan down on the field, during sports day, Katie doing folk dancing under Miss Norjan’s teaching.

I remember Miss Norjan’s pronunciation and diction in English.

She was indeed a versatile teacher.

She taught us more than just academic subjects. We were first exposed to poise and flair by her. We all remember her high heeled stilettos and her fashionable outfits. She taught us good taste. (At this point of the speech, I put on my sunglasses!)

We emulate her. I asked Miss Norjan whether she knows that Nordin Norwani till this day signs his initials almost exactly like hers! I urged her to claim the 40+ years of royalty from Nordin!

But we may have been mischievous, or done wrong to her in school. For all our irritations or wrongdoings, I asked for her forgiveness.

We may not remember all the details of mischief or the fond memories of our experience with her, but we certainly remember her overall spirit of clarity, confidence, dedication and the love she gave to her students. And for that, we are forever in gratitude.

On a personal note, I announced to her that after over 3 decades of corporate work, after 45 years of first being taught by her, I finally now can be like her! I am now on my own as a trainer and coach, so I can emulate her spirit of giving, of being in contribution, of imparting knowledge to others, of improving skills, of helping change the world. She paid forward then, now I can pay back and pay forward.

To close the speech, I said that I had a song for her, from that time of our schooldays, Close To You by the duo that Radzi Mustaffa and I were great fans of, The Carpenters. The lyrics (changed) are appropriate for the occasion.

I recited the first verse:

Why do birds suddenly appear
every time you are near
Just like me, they long to say
they thank you

Then I sang! I sang the next verses:

Why do stars fall down from the sky
every time you walk by
Just like me, they long to say
they thank you

On the day that you were born
the angels got together
and decided to create a dream come true
So they sprinkled moon dust in your hair
of gold and starlight in your eyes of blue

That is why
all of us in town (and from out of town!)
gather here
all around
Just like me, we long to say
we thank you

Why…? We thank you
Why…? We thank you
Why…? We thank you

Miss Norjan, we thank you

Pic: When standing on the chair was the only way to get (most of the) attention of 130+ schoolmates engrossed in their reunion conversations!