Disappointment

I will be the first to agree that SA is not a perfect school. As a member of its teaching staff, I have had to endure lots of work. Like me, many of the other staff members have had to spend countless hours doing work that is in addition to our core business, which is teaching. We have had to bring our students out for various activities and competitions. We have had to call up parents and deal with various issues related to their children. We have had to drive the students home because we got back late into the night from some activities. We have had to spend our own money, and more often than not, our time to make sure that everyone (else) is taken care of. Many a times, we have neglected some family activities to cater to the school's activities and to take care of our students. Often some of us had to lend our things to our students so that they don't get into trouble with whoever. We've played counsellor, nurse, nanny, friend, storekeeper, you name it, we've probably done it.
So what really irks me is how we are accused of many things. SA teachers are supposedly over ambitious. We supposedly care only for the name of the school and not the individual students. We kononnya do not have the interest of the students at hand and only make demands from their parents.
Coming back to why I am disappointed. Because of the charity dinner, I have opened my eyes to how everyone else sees us. The dinner was never meant to be a burden to parents. Someone asked if we wanted red carpet for the school. Meaning, we are over-ambitious and having a swimming pool or an air-conditioned hall is just pure luxury, not a need.
So I am feeling sad that we are surrounded by people with no vision for the future of SA. Much as I dread the amount of work we have to do in SA every time we are endowed with some titles, I AM proud of my role in this school. And I do want to be proud of the students and their parents for their roles in this school. I hope that the SA family will work together and this family includes not only the staff.