Misery, Party of Two

A very close friend of mine called me this morning to tell me, “The class is only for refugees and citizens.” “What do you mean?” I asked. “I can’t take the class (sniff).” All the sudden the good day I was having, made a hard left as the pain my friend was experiencing I shared. I am sure three sentences in, you would like some background, so let me back it up a taste.

When I did not pass the July 2009 Bar Examination, I did not cry. I turned off the lights, put on the saddest movies in my DVD collection and laid on my futon in the dark for hours. When I finally picked up the pieces and decided to try again for the February exam, I had an ace up my sleeve. I had found someone who promised to support me and encourage me while I studied for the February exam. It worked! I passed and it was due in large part to the support of this person, who provided for me not only financially but emotionally as well. I owed them big time. Now let us get to the meat of the matter so to speak. This person (who shall remain nameless) is an immigrant from Mexico, who had received no education beyond the 6th grade, when they had to drop out of school to support their family. At the age of 16, they fled to America in the hopes of better options. They have lived in this country since then, and they are one of the most caring, beautiful people I have ever had the good fortune of meeting. This person did more than support me in helping to pass the bar, but they helped quell some inner issues I have struggled with all my life (maybe in a later post you will find these out). The one thing this person desired more than anything else was to get their GED. I was determined to help.

I spent the large part of the summer transporting them to the library for Pre-GED classes, helping them improve their grammar (English is their 2nd language well hell even some people who spoke English first still do not speak it well, [again a later post]). Unfortunately, the time came where I found employment and moved to DC, and my friend was left to fend for himself or herself in finishing the Pre-GED classes, so they could take the GED classes. Then, disorganization and anarchy hit. The past two months of these Pre-GED classes has been a colossal waste of time, if the teacher was not talking about Obama, she was having the class read a newspaper and discussing it. Nothing, if anything, was done to improve overall writing and math skills, a large part of the GED test. In fact, the classes were so bad that several of the more recent ones, my friend got up and left realizing they would learn more reading the books they had on their own. FYI: GED stands for General Educational Development it is the test taken as a substitute or more accurately to displays standard education level equivalent to one who has completed high school in the United States or Canada.

Finally, there seemed to be some hope. Today, my friend went to downtown Brooklyn where there was a five-hour course offered twice a week to prepare students for the GED classes and the GED exam itself. I was happy and so was my friend. Finally, they would be on the fast track to getting their GED. Now does the first line make sense? I feel horrible and most of all I feel helpless. How could someone so deserving of getting what most of us take for granted be constantly foiled by an inept system? I write this blog to express my thoughts and feelings, with the understanding that we have all and will feel this way sometime in our lives. If anyone knows of any private tutors in Brooklyn, or a good GED class please let me know. Otherwise, you can read this blog in silent assent, and understand misery does not have to love company; sometimes being a good friend means vicariously experiencing the good and the bad. This does not mean I am in favor of pity parties, but sometimes in order to show true sympathy, you must start with empathy. Misery party of two.