A Reflective Note
A thumb isn’t just a body part used to “imprint” documents—it can become a symbol of hope and change.
It was a sweltering day, and my autistic student had already completed four classes before lunch. He stood outside the classroom, gasping for air, drenched in sweat. I asked if he had finished his dance task during P.E. He admitted he had forgotten but promised to submit it later that afternoon.
This same scene repeated itself over several days. Each time, I asked—and each time, he made the same promise.
On performance day – dance activity, he appeared anxious and continued perspiring heavily. Though he answered me politely, his movements and nonverbal cues revealed significant distress. I invited him for a walk in the hallway and asked again; he gave me the same reassurance and confessed, “I’ve been lazy lately and forgot Teacher, sorry for this.”
I realized then that something simple was needed—a gesture to bond our mutual commitment. Suddenly, I recalled the Filipino ritual, Sanduguan (blood compact) as a sign of oneness during my Araling Panlipunan Subject in High School, and I laughed quietly at the thought—obviously, I wasn’t going to draw blood with him! Still, I wondered: “What can I do to truly help him keep his promise?”
Then it struck me—I raised my right thumb and asked him to repeat after me: “I will do my task before I get lazy.” We repeated this thumb promise five times and more together.
Over the next few days, whenever I saw him around school, we reinforced the promise—thumb raised, phrase repeated now with more genuine smile and enthusiasm.
A few days later, he excitedly approached me and showed me with his Filipino comic project. “I did this before I got lazy, Teacher,” he beamed. His humility, the apology for past forgetfulness, and his neat, creative work filled me with pride. The next day, I shared this experience with his Filipino teacher (who is also his class adviser) confirmed he submitted early—and earned a great grade for his effort and submitting it ahead of time.
