Nanay Nita at 63 at Mantayupan Elementary School in Barili. Tonee Despojo
JUANITA SARANSAN
Most of the elderly are retired from work and stay at home; but not 63-year-old Juanita Saransan.
‘Nanay Nita,’ as she is fondly called by many, looks forward to going out of the house each day.
With her favorite old blue bag that has two notebooks and a pencil, she walks barefoot on slippery roads for half a kilometer to get to the Mantayupan Elementary School in the mountain village of Mantayupan, Barili, southern Cebu.
Now at her senior years, she works hard to be a pupil of the grade school.
“Good morning,” she greeted, shyly, as a team from Cebu Daily News arrived to meet her.
It was almost lunchtime when Nanay Nita sat down with CDN for an interview, wearing her uniform white blouse and a denim pencil skirt.
“Write,” the old learner answered when asked what she did in school that day.
She then presented one of her notebooks to show that she had finished writing the letter ’B’ on the entire right page while she filled up the left page with the letter “M.”
Nanay Nita also said that she has learned to count.
“One, two, three, four, five,” she paused and giggled.
“Six, seven, eight, nine, (and) ten,” she quickly added with a smile.
WILLINGNESS TO LEARN
Charlotte Pagador, a grade two teacher recalled how Nanay Nita ended up in their school.
“Last 2016 to 2017, dinha na siya sa pultahan sa among gate nagdala siya sa iyang bag. Nagpangutana ko niya. Asa man ka nang? (she was at the gate of our school bringing her bag. I asked her, where are you going?),” recounted Pagador.
Nanay Nita answered that she wanted to attend classes at Mantayupan Elementary School.
“Asa diay ka before ni skwela? (Where did you go to school before),” Pagador asked the elderly woman standing behind the gate.
Nanay Nita said that she had gone to the Day care center of Mantayupan but the little kids got scared and quarreled her.
“Inig sulod niya ang mga bata kay dili na manulod kay naa siya, mohilak. Mga gagmay kaayo, day care. Mao ng ni anhi siya dinhi (When she went to day care, the small children would refuse to go inside the classroom and cry because she was there. That’s why she decided to come here instead),” narrated Pagador.
Upon hearing her story, Pagador asked Nanay Nita which class she wanted to attend.
Perhaps feeling the warmth of Pagador’s welcome, Nanay Nita immediately chose to be in her grade 2 class and began her writing lessons there.
She has never missed a day in class since then.
EAGERNESS TO LEARN
Nanay Nita spends half a day in Pagador’s class and then continues her writing lessons with Percival Capio, a grade three teacher, in the afternoon.
“Na-appreciate nako iyang presence and eagerness to learn (I really appreciate her presence and eagerness to learn),” said Capio who was surprised to see Nanay Nita join his class for the school year.
He described the 63-year old learner as a quiet and obedient student.
According to Capio, while Nanay Nita’s learning capacity is equivalent to kinder or grade one pupils, he will continue to guide her until she can fully spell and write her name.
Grade three lessons focused more on word recognition and stories; and having Nanay Nita in his class, he said, was a challenge.
Capio already has 39 grade three students and teaching Nanay Nita to write entails extra time.
“But I am thankful for her eagerness to learn,” Capio said.
Although not officially enrolled, the 63-year old pupil will be graded based on her school performance and writing skills, just like the other students.
Nanay Nita also participates in school activities.
Just last week, she joined a Girl Scout activity wearing the official uniform.
NANAY NITA’S FAMILY
The fourth of seven siblings, Nanay Nita lives in a shanty some ten meters away from the house shared by her sister, Leticia and brother, Ramon.
Though happy that his older sister was still interested in attending school, 60-year-old Ramon told CDN that he was sometimes worried that she had become a burden to the teachers who had to give her extra attention.
The extra attention given to Nanay Nita was obvious as soon as CDN accompanied the elderly pupil to join the faculty of Mantayupan Elementary School for lunch after her interview.
“Kaon (Let’s eat),” she invited while enjoying a meal of chicken adobo and rice prepared by Sir Pagador.
Her teachers treat Nanay Nita as a family member.
Aside from additional school supplies, they give her food and clothes.
After the lunch break, CDN accompanied Nanay Nita to her house, about half a kilometer away from school, going through rough roads.
The road was slippery; but it was nothing to her.
“Wala man ulan. Naa pud ko payong. Naa ko tsinelas inig maglapok (There’s no rain and I have an umbrella. I have a pair of slippers if there is mud),” she said.
Ramon recalled that his sister got interested in going to school when she saw his grandchildren attending classes at Mantayupan Elementary School.
The siblings help support Nanay Nita’s basic needs; while she uses the town’s monthly aid of Php 500 to P1,000 for senior citizen beneficiaries to buy food, clothes and school supplies.
When CDN entered her tiny room at home, she showed off two blue skirts which she wears to school.
Nanay Nita then happily shared that she has gained many friends at school, one of them is named Coleen.
”Dili magdula. Storya storya lang,” (We don’t play. We just talk), she told CDN.
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