Condolement
I have been teaching in Sunnydale since January 2011, and i teach Maths in Classes 9 and 10, as in i teach O' level Maths in Sunnydale. In the 8 years i have taught in Sunnydale, i have taught almost one thousand students. If i have to be very honest, of these 1000 students, i would say with my eyes closed that Elona was probably the best student ever in my 8 years of teaching career in Sunnydale in Classes 9 and 10. Of these 1000 students, Elona is probably the best, right on the top at number 1. Even without doing any coaching or attending any mock exams, and i know she didn't always study at home either in those last few months because often she was dejected and sad and distracted. Even then, studying only for one and a half months before such a tough exam as the A2, she obtained 3 A* grades and 1 A, missing A* in Physics only by one mark. I'm sure if it is sent for re-check, she will get the A* in Physics too. Likewise, she got 4 straight A* grades in her AS, and 9 straight A* grades in her O' level exams too. She was so talented, she was such a genius, she only needed to study for just 2 or 3 hours a day on an average daily basis at home and that was good enough for her to get her A*s and above 95% marks in all her exams and tests in school. I remember last year July when i called Elona on the phone and told her if she can teach my cousins, she told me "Sir it would be an honour for me to teach your cousins and i would be more than happy to join immediately Sir". And both my cousins Aneeq and Aryah are in Sunbeams and they needed a teacher immediately. However Elona didn't tell me that two of her units of AS exams were still left. When i found this out, i told Elona right away "Elona what are you even saying? Two of your AS exams are still left, you have to study for them, please concentrate on them, you will join only after your exams are over". Even my Emma mami told me "Imu Elona doesn't have to join now, she should focus entirely on her A' level exams now, she can always join after her exams are over. It's only a matter of 7 or 8 days after all". When i told Elona everything that "Elona even my mami wants you to join only after your exams are over, there's no hurry, and i also want you to join only after the last two units are over and all your AS exams are done with." Elona just laughed and told me "Sir don't worry about me, my preparations for these last two units have been finished a long time ago and i even finished revising them twice. I can easily join now Sir because your cousins need me now because their final exams are going on. As for me Sir, i am very well prepared and am very confident, my exams are gonna go well Sir don't worry". I think i was more nervous than her at that moment because i was worried what if Elona's preparations are hampered. Two months later, when the results came out, i was the first person Elona informed, and she showed me her results, i knew she would get 4 A*s easily and she easily got 4 A*s, and she reminded me "Sir remember you were tensed because i started teaching Aneeq and Aryah before my exams got over, but here Sir, 4 A*s for you", and she laughed. I couldn't help but laugh too and i told her "Elona i know you are a genius, but i now also know what levels of confidence you have. You have the sharpest brains and intellect for any student i know." I am recalling this fact because it shows two things, one, what a supremely talented and confident student she was and she could do miracles by only studying a few hours a day, that shows how incredibly sharp her brain was. And two, it shows how caring and compassionate and selfless a human-being Elona was. Whereas she could have easily started teaching my cousins a week or so later so that she could have waited for her exams to be over, she still started immediately because she knew my cousins needed her help since their final exams in Sunbeams were going on.
I remember the day Elona's O' level results came out in August 2017, Elona posted a snapshot of her marksheet on her facebook post and tagged me and a few other teachers in her caption thanking us for our contribution to her results. When i saw the post which was her status update on facebook and saw she got 9 A*s in her 9 subjects, straight A*s in all her subjects and most of the marks were above 95, i wrote an elaborate comment on her post praising Elona and thanking her. To my comment Elona replied, "Sir your words are so special and has made me so happy, that i actually think your words mean more to me than my O' level results itself." And this she wrote to me on the day her O' level results were published. Just imagine what an angel Elona was. And Elona further wrote "Trust me Sir, you are one of those people in my life i will never ever forget even 50 years from now". These were some of the best comments any one ever wrote to me on facebook. She was talking of 50 years, i so wish she had those 50 years, i so wish like anything she had those 50 years and many many more, that which she herself wished. Elona's most tragic passing away is a huge loss to not only Sunnydale and the academic fraternity in general, but it is a massive loss to our society, to our whole nation. She had it all in her to be the best at whatever she had aspired to do, and she would have been a huge asset and a massive pride for the whole country. Her extremely sad and unacceptable demise means our country has lost one of it's brighest souls, one of it's treasures, and the academic and intellectual fraternity of our nation has lost a gem, which is gone too soon. This loss can never be recovered, because there will never be another student and another person like Elona ever again, not even in 100 years. Elona was a gift from God, a gift that sparkled the most brightly, a gift that illuminated and lit up the lives of so many people, the most precious gift, but that gift is gone way too soon.
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