Teaching at Nirmala High School is far more than a profession for me; it is a daily encounter with life in all its richness and fragility. As I stand before students from different faiths, castes, and social backgrounds, I feel deeply privileged to witness their curiosity, struggles, and quiet dreams. In the classroom, learning moves both ways. While I teach Biology and English, the children teach me resilience, honesty, and hope. Gradually, trust grows. I come to know their family realities, their hidden fears, and their longing to be understood. In these simple moments, education becomes a space where faith is lived gently, not imposed where Christ’s love is shared through patience, respect, and presence.
Our school, newly affiliated with the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) Board, serves children of farmers, daily wage earners, and hardworking parents who carry big hopes for their children. Their expectations of me are not only academic but deeply human: they look for guidance, consistency, prayerfulness, and care. This responsibility fills me with both joy and humility. Each day challenges me to balance firmness with compassion, discipline with tenderness, and structure with creativity. I try to encourage slow learners, awaken questioning minds, and help every child believe that they are capable and valued. Beyond lessons and exams, I gently guide them to discover gratitude for life and respect for one another; seeds that may one day grow in surprising ways.
Outside school hours, my mission widens. Twice a week, I visit families with the Lay Associates, praying the Rosary and sharing the Word of God. These visits are simple yet deeply life-giving. In Vinukonda, a young Church shaped by faith and hardship, people open their homes and hearts readily. Many are tired from work, weighed down by uncertainty, yet eager for God’s closeness. Together with twelve committed Lay Associates, we meet, pray, reflect, and plan small but meaningful actions. Their generosity amazes me. Slowly, they become collaborators in mission: singing carols, preparing liturgies, participating in feasts, discovering that they too are called towards all.
Sundays carry their own quiet beauty. I catechize children who come with eager faces and honest questions, while visits to villages like Perulapadu leave a deep imprint on my heart. The elderly there, often left behind as their children migrate, may not read, but they listen with shining eyes and hearts full of faith. In the evenings, family visits continue, moments of shared laughter, tears, prayer, and encouragement. I often return home tired, yet unexpectedly renewed. Again and again, I realize that mission is not about doing great things, but about being present where life unfolds. Sustained by God’s grace and a personal friendship with Him, I walk forward with joy, trusting the words of Jesus: “I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me.”
Sr. James Arul Mary, Hyderabad
