It was Monday morning, 25^th day of August which my early vocation of the day has been set. Since my day in teaching, I always see to it that my schedule will be in the morning. I dislikes the afternoon session for I refuse to see the eyes of students with mixed feeling of going home and the point which their interest started to exhaust. I prepare two lessons that day.  I provided one for my Elementary Algebra, another for Geometry while I scheduled my Advance Algebra for an evaluation test. Our lesson in Elementary Algebra requires a review on “Addition of like and Unlike Signs”. Adding like signs will always give positive result, regardless of its signs. Positive and a positive resulted to positive, likewise negative and a negative signs still provide a positive answer. As for the Geometry, I have a review on adjacent angles to integrate it to the introduction of quadrilaterals. I made it clear to the student that any adjacent angles is always a supplementary angles, hence, regardless of its degrees the two angles share a to a total of 180 degrees.

I pack-up my bag after a glass of coffee’ with milk and a pair of slice bread, I rushed to our old-wheels that shuttle to our Barrio High National High School. I was expecting to be a bit earlier than my students, but I was wrong. When I enter in the classroom, I found them all set to take the early lessons. I wrote on the blackboard the rules on “addition of like and unlike sign”. I situated my writing on the rear side of the blackboard to give more space for illustrations and discussions. I limit my illustrations into four, since adding like signs required examples on adding negative and a negative equals positive and adding positive equals positive too, while unlike signs need examples on adding negative and a positive  equals negative, another on addition of positive and a negative equals to negative also. To make this clear let us observe these mathematical presentations;

Addition of like signs:

1.) -(-)=+

2.) +(+)=+

Addition of Unlike signs:

1.)  –(+)=-

2.)  +(-)=-

I started my discussions as clear as my writings. I tried to convince them that any opposing idea will never gives positive result, like the addition of unlike signs. “YES MA’AM!”  They chanted in chorus as if my ears drop its drums. ” VERY GOOD!” I seconded. Then how about the like signs, I asked. One student was so very shy and said… Ma’am, you said before that a negative number is not a counting numbers for they are not natural numbers, how are the two negative numbers become positive? I paused for a while and think on the question. It is a very smart question that I cannot think for an immediate answer. In the first place I plan to give it as an assignment to give ways for my advance research. But I am too shy to play this as an alibi. Alas! I have a clue! I invite their attention and listen for awhile for were almost done with our discussions. I started to explain and walk from the right corner of the blackboard and pause when I arrive on the rear end. Class, negative numbers are extension of natural numbers, I exaggerate! But another smart student debated me that these negative numbers can be used in scaling that goes below zero such as temperature. If the temperature is below zero, that person is dead, and how should two death became positive.  It is another intellectual question but I have enough to answer it. The answer is simple, I uttered, death is natural, which prove that negative is an extension of natural numbers. A student on the left corner who did not understand the flow of the discussions said, Ma’am! There is many natural numbers in Udalo!  (the war zone since August 24, between Piagapo Lanao del Sur and Munai Lanao del Norte) I became damned and cannot remember my last tone. I closed my class record and announce the early break time. I advise them to come back on time, because the next teacher will keep waiting.

I mingled with my fellow teachers who were busy discussing with the number of casualties in the same place. Classes in all level, both high school and elementary has been suspended. We were the only school who handle their regular classes. We cannot suspend the classes for the “National College Admission examination will be given on the 27^th of the same month. We have only two days to wait, except, we will be handling review on the said Examination to the Senior Students who will take on the said date. Although the smoke of the war extends beyond our books, but the welfare of the students will be much affected. We cannot decide otherwise. I confessed my new anecdote in my freshman students, but they supported the jokes and agreed that there are really many natural numbers in the said place, meaning many died in the combat zone.

I pick-up my lesson plan for Geometry and exit to forget the issue. Right after a few touched on the past lessons, I drew a line intersected by another line and asked the students what does this line means. One student answered loudly and said it forms two angles and the same are adjacent angles. That is correct! I cheered! Can you explain further? As I point on another student. Then the student answered…Ma’am, an adjacent angles are supplementary angles! Well done! I clap my hands. Can you give a particular example?  Like a supplementary angles that we are discussing now! Another student volunteered. Ma’am! She proudly ushered, Udalo and Radapan are adjacent barangay,Therefore, they are supplementary angles equals to 180 degrees. The Barangay Udalo evacuated and so did Radapan, they shared 180 degrees of the war, she added. The line of the Arm Forces of the Philippines intersected the line of the Bangsamoro Army, forming two angles so that the two adjacent Barangay unequally acquired the degrees of the war. Thus, the degrees affect the two and make the people to evacuate. Oh! Dear ALLAH! My two lessons never give morale to keep for these scared students. Their minds were filled with the smoke of the war! I have no comment to share but I instead shed tears and went out side of the room.

Before the morning session ended, series of bang! Another bang!  Another bang again! My students were nowhere to find! They run as fast as they can, and I did not tend to catch them I cannot make it! I enter in the faculty Room and cried so loud that I did not notice the other faculties who cried in chorus. The powerful weapon was just two kilometers away from our school. The machine gun was operated in the Hail side of the nearest University. The smoke and the sounds hurt our ears. We don’t know where to find a safest place. The gun seems to bang our head, tough it was not. Fear accommodates our heart. We don’t know whom to save, although the victim was unknown. We were certain there were some, but we don’t know who they are. Fear, confusions and a mixed feeling of anger, but we don’t know whose to blame.

The following day, I report for office work to check my students. Who were safe and who may not. Thanks to the mercy of ALLAH! They were all clearly safe but only some report for school and the few never show-up until this writing is made. I cannot afford to think such harmony in school which turned out to be horror. I cannot open my book for it entails a memory of the past. The memories that keeps my heart to hold all the hands of my students, but I was not able to reach them. They scattered in every corner of the school to secure themselves. Finally, they went home with out taking my warnings. Such is the pictures of scared students.

We are the students and teachers in this Combat Zone. We carried in our books but the smoke of the war extended beyond! Can we have a chance to interpret other expressions and terms other than the smoke of the war? How will our lives as students and educators move without been pricked by its thorn…  

              YA ALLAH! SAVE OUR MISSION IN LIFE. WE ARE YOUR SERVANTS WHO SAT UNDER YOUR MERCY! Please hear us YA ALLAH!......... AMEEN!

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