REED

KRRRIINNGGGGG

The bell rang as the students go out of the room some are happily chatting with their classmates and other students are silently walking in the hallway. While I am running for my life so I cannot be late for my next class. My heart started to pound faster as sweat is running through my face. I don’t know how many students I bumped to but one thing is for sure I am seeing the door of my next class.

There is nothing special about my next class and it is one of my minor subjects however my professor is acting as one of my major subjects. He is quite hard-headed and as a student, I felt that I don’t want to feel his bad mood.  

The last thing I want is to be seen by him.

At last, my hand reaches the door and luckily Mr. Reed, my professor is not yet in the classroom.

As I walk slowly with my shoulder goes up and down due to the heavy breathing. I thanked God I am not late. My feet automatically walked fast as I heard his voice and quickly sit on my chair.

“Good morning everyone.”

“Good morning Sir!” I said as my classmate says the same.

“Okay, the topic is all about….” Mr. Reed continued to his lecture while I roamed my eyes.

Despite the stubbornness of my professor, my classmates are still his fans. On this day, my classmates are busy having their gift in their bag except me.

Well, I don’t have money. He is fairly popular, especially among girls. Then I felt that my classmate at the back kicks my chair so I look at my back giving Lily a stern look hoping that she would stop kicking my chair.

This is not the first time she did it and I don’t know why she is doing it.

“Stop it.” She whispers but Lily just smiled sarcastically.

My mind snaps back to reality as Mr. Reed write a phrase on the blackboard. Then he faces the students and asks.

“What is more important, knowledge or imagination?” The president of the class raised his hand and said.

“Knowledge Sir.” I heard a whisper among my classmate as they are having their conversation.

“Why?” Mr. Reed asked while smiling ears from ears.

“Because even if you have imagination. Without knowledge it is useless.” The topic made me curious as well. I saw one of classmate raise her hand and stand.

“Sir, I think that imagination is way important than knowledge.”

“Why?”

“Somehow, knowledge keeps growing through our imagination.”

“How can you say that?” Then, I felt that tension is building up as

Mr. Reed asked that question.

“Our ancestors within their stories that someday in their near future there will be a metal bird or a faster carriage and that’s where we are now.” My classmate smiled proudly at what she said.

“Does imagination solely create the airplane?” Mr. Reed asked while her smile slowly fades.

“No Sir.” She said quietly.

“Therefore I conclude that without knowledge, imagination is futile.” at that point of time, with the determination of Mr. Reed’s face. I somehow know what will be the answer. Then I felt the chair moved again but I choose to ignore it. 

I look at Dave, one of my classmates as he raises his hand and stands up.

“Sir, I believe that Rina is quite right as Mr Albert Einstein said that imagination is powerful. Without imagination knowledge will be stagnant and if it not useful enough it will be forgotten.”

“True, but knowledge and fact also created what we have right now. Therefore it is important.” I slowly lower my head. 

“Here we go again.” With that tone of him, I know what his answer is and I wonder what he wanted to prove. A small chatting sound filled my ears and my patience is getting shorter when Lily continuously kicks my chair until I cannot tolerate it.

“Hey, can’t you--!” The next thing I knew was I am standing in the middle as silence filled the room. My classmate and professor are looking at me while Lily gave me a look who’s already won her game. 

“What is your name?” Mr. Reed asked.

“Emma. My name is Emma, Sir.”

“Okay Miss Emma, do you perhaps have something to share with us?” I tried to dig what is in store in my mind but my sweat keeps running and all I can think about is nothing. 

“Well then, you can just answer my question earlier.” I keep looking at the questions on the board and think. I know what he wanted to hear but I just can’t say it.

“Sir I just wanted to ask, according to what you said as well as my classmates. I realized that imagination is important because knowledge exists as well as knowledge keeps growing because of imagination. Then why would I, a humble student dare to choose what is important, when they can’t function enough without each other.” I lower my head as cold caress my hand.

“I like what you said earlier, imagination is important because knowledge exist. Does that mean knowledge is more important?”

“Sir, that not what I meant, I am merely asking and humbly says that both are important.”

“Then let’s all say that both of them are important but the question remains the same. What is more important, knowledge or imagination?”

“Sir My answer is both of them are important.”

“Miss Emma, you are ruining the essence of the question. If they are both equally important then why the hell would I ask such a question?” Then he slowly walks towards me. 

“Sir, I… ”

“If you choose nothing, then after that you will do nothing. Then the conversation ends here. Am I right?”

“Sir that’s not what I meant…”

“Then you can choose between the two, I am right or I am right.” He walks toward me as slowly as I can remember.

“Or you can choose between, I am right or you are wrong.” I was stunned by his question.

At that moment, I slowly doubt my answer what if he is right and I am wrong. He knows more than I do. I just want to live in peace. I don't even want to argue what is wrong or right.

“Did he have a selective listening?”  

How can I answer when he is leaving me no choice?

The agony in my heart turns into anxiety but the moment I saw my professors face. 

My mind thought of something and before I knew it my lips started to open.

 “Sir, I will choose I am right and I am right or I am right and you might be wrong.”  

I wanted to say sorry for being rude but he makes me feel it first. I can’t help to feel the agony, thinking that provoking him is not a good idea.

Everyone whispers when Sir Reed kept silent as if he is thinking deeply. After that, he smiled as if nothing is wrong.

“Then if you insist that both are important. I will ask a different question. You said that knowledge and imagination are important to each other.”

“Yes, Sir.”

“Then hypothetically, if imagination and knowledge are a couple...” At that moment my classmate went wild and the girls keep giggling. The tensions went down but I just can’t let my guard down.

“Class, I said hypothetically. Calm down” Then he focused on me.

“Who will you be between the two and why?” Somehow the question is not quite hard.

“I will choose to be the imagination.” 

“Why?”

“So knowledge will grow and never be forgotten.” My classmate went wild again; they cannot help to smile while other is silently screaming. I don’t know if there is a secret joke that I don’t know. Then I looked at my Professor. This time he smiled differently. It felt warm and caring.

“Thank you for your participation, you may sit.” My legs felt numb as I sit on my chair.

Mr. Reed’s P.O.V.

“Now let’s go back to our main topic. Miss Emma is rights why would I choose when one becomes useless without the other.” I said while walking toward the board in front of the class and saw Miss Emma.

It is more than a surprise that the lady participated in class. She is the kind of student who walks in the class and goes out like she has nothing to do with anyone. She is here just for attendance.  

“You see everything has their reason to exist. The irony is, even though we know their importance, it is crucial for humanity's growth and survival to choose, so we can move forward.” 

"Sir, what if we choose and failed in the process?" One of the students asks. I smiled at the question. It seems that they wouldn’t notice that I somehow fail in the process a while ago as I was teaching. I tend to think ahead. 

"One thing is for sure, failure is inevitable; you will experience it every single day. It doesn’t matter how big or small it is because, at the end of the day, you’ve done wrong.” The students sit still and stay silent, while my eyes roamed at my students and can’t help think the questions earlier.

“Then you can choose between the two, I am right or I am right.”

I never thought that there will be a time that someone will find the right answer to that question and to the person I least expected.

“However, failure is an opportunity to know what is wrong and discover what is right. While looking forward to the question of what might happen next. A riddle that no one can solve might be answered by the last person you expected just because they choose to have the courage to answer it.” I walked to the back of the table and face my students again

“Many successful people failed a lot of times. The only difference is they choose to move forward and take responsibility and that is something I can live with.”

Then the bell rang.

“Okay class our lesson end here. Take care and goodbye.”