Young Noor stood at the beginning of his third-grade classroom, carrying his grade report with nervous hands. First place. Again. His educator smiled with pride. His peers clapped. For a momentary, beautiful moment, the 9-year-old boy believed his hopes of being a soldier—of serving his homeland, of causing his parents happy—were possible.
That was three months ago.
Today, Noor has left school. He assists his father in the carpentry workshop, mastering to polish furniture instead of studying mathematics. His school attire remains in the closet, unused but neat. His learning materials sit arranged in the corner, their pages no longer moving.
Noor passed everything. His family did all they could. And even so, it fell short.
This is the story of how being poor doesn't just limit opportunity—it eliminates it totally, even for the most talented children who do all that's required and more.
Despite Excellence Isn't Enough
Noor Rehman's parent works as a woodworker in the Laliyani area, a little settlement in Kasur, Punjab, Pakistan. He's talented. He remains dedicated. He departs home prior to sunrise and returns after dark, his hands hardened from years of shaping wood into furniture, frames, and decorative pieces.
On successful months, he brings in around 20,000 rupees—around seventy US dollars. On slower months, even less.
From that salary, his household of six members Education must pay for:
- Monthly rent for their little home
- Provisions for four children
- Bills (power, water, cooking gas)
- Healthcare costs when kids fall ill
- Transportation
- Apparel
- Additional expenses
The math of poverty are simple and harsh. There's never enough. Every coin is committed before earning it. Every decision is a selection between necessities, never between necessity and luxury.
When Noor's tuition came due—along with expenses for his brothers' and sisters' education—his father dealt with an unworkable equation. The calculations wouldn't work. They not ever do.
Some cost had to give. One child had to forgo.
Noor, as the first-born, understood first. He remains mature. He's mature exceeding his years. He comprehended what his parents were unable to say openly: his education was the expense they could no longer afford.
He didn't cry. He did not complain. He merely stored his school clothes, set aside his learning materials, and inquired of his father to teach him the craft.
Since that's what young people in poor circumstances learn first—how to abandon their aspirations without fuss, without weighing down parents who are already carrying more than they can bear.