Smallville

For most people of my age, hearing Smallville reminds them about this American superhero television series based on SuperMan. For some, the word may not even mean anything to them. However, for a small group of people in my English 101 class in Malayan Colleges Laguna, Smallville is a nickname given to me by our wise, intelligent, and, yet, a very loving professor - Dr. Luisa Recillo. She definitely made an impact to the person I am now.

It was in the early days of my first year in university when my friend and I had the need to go to the faculty room to look for another professor. (Un)luckily for us, it was Dr. Recillo who was present in the room. Just like any other student in my university, I was not comfortable with speaking in English so I tried my luck and I spoke in Filipino. Unsurprisingly, she nicely encouraged me to translate what I just said in English so I mustered all my courage and did just that. It was my first encounter with her.

Our English lessons with her were not only informative but they were also fun. She knew how to make a seemingly or supposedly boring class for engineering students into an entertaining and hilarious one. Aside from that, she handled all the students' jokes, may it be stupid or not, really well. To top it all off, she was like our mother in school. She gave us great advice and she was so caring of all of us. She even hosted a small gathering at her place for us to get to know more about each other.

During one of our class discussions, she asked us whether we knew about a television series called Smallville. I heard about this show and knew it was about SuperMan but I never actually watched it before that day. She then asked me whether it was okay to call me Smallville. As a guy with short stature, my first instinct was to ask myself if she was making fun of me. Shortly after, she clarified that she asked because she thought I looked like Clark Kent. To this day, I still don't know whether that was her actual reason but I went along with it. It became an inside joke between the two of us (and probably for others in the same class as me).

In the middle of my stay in university, she had to leave the school for another prestigious one. Thanks to Facebook, we managed to stay in contact. She frequently commented on my posts and turned a blind eye on my grammatical mistakes (not because she didn't care). Out of wonder, a lot of my friends and relatives curiously asked me why she used to call me Smallville and, every single time, I had to tell the hilarious story behind it. Our social media banters showed a lot how humorous and caring she was. I will surely miss those.

In the mid of 2020, 7 years after I graduated, I had this idea of improving my English writing and speaking skills. Of course, the first person in my mind was her. I reached out to her and she made time for me in between her class lectures and theses. We had a weekly Skype call where we talked about how to improve my grammar and presentation skills. She was so helpful and I really appreciated how she spent time to review my essays despite her busy schedule. Thanks to her, I managed to exceed my expected score in IELTS.

In the morning of my birthday this 2021, together with a birthday greeting from one of my closest friend back in university, I received a terrible news that she already passed away. I am so grateful to have the opportunity to meet this lovely woman. She was a great professor, a wonderful friend, and a caring mother, not only for her family but to all her students.

Thank you for sharing to us your love of The Beatles and The Starry Night. Thanks for the friendship and guidance. Lastly, thank you for all the love and care you have shown to all of us, your students, even after we have left university. You made us better and helped us to come closer to our full potential. We will surely miss you.

Your forever Smallville,

Darwin