Hope Matters
Reyes Guana, 42, grew up in a poor Mexican family. He has seven brothers and sisters. His parents always had two jobs to make ends meet.
As a boy, Guana had a good relationship with the school cleaner. He called her "Nike" because she wore Nike shoes. The boy liked how Nike made everything clean. He told her he wanted to be a cleaner, too. "Well, it's good if you want to be a cleaner," Nike told little Guana. "But make sure you go to college."
Guana also looked up to the principal (校长) of his school. The school leader told the boy that his job was to help students and teachers. "Wow, when I grow up, I want to do what you're doing," Guana told him. "Well, if you stick to your dream, you will," the principal replied.
And Guana really got there. But it was quite a long journey for him. Twenty-three years ago, he followed in Nike's footsteps and was cleaning schools. He worked at three schools to pay for his college education. He held that job for four years and then worked his way up to being a school safety monitor. After that, he worked as a teacher for a few years.
Now, as a principal, Guana never forgets where he came from. He helps students from poor families and shows respect (尊重) for every school staff member. He always invites everyone to school parties, including those who clean the floors and those who drive the school buses.
