The Teacher's Story as a Student's Helper in Overcoming Cigarette Addiction

Although students typically enter school on Fridays, on that weekend, all teachers still had to come to school on Saturday. This was because there were specific activities and seminars for the teachers' council.

I made an effort to arrive early; an hour before the event, I was already at the school. It turned out that some teachers had arrived even earlier and had breakfast at a food stall near the school complex. Without waiting long, I joined them.

After finishing breakfast, we sat back and shared various life stories.

"When I see the mischief of the students at school, it reminds me of my school days," said Mrs. Desti, one of the senior teachers.

"Wow, it turns out our teacher was naughty in school too," remarked a fellow teacher.

"Well, of course, they are kids; they must have been naughty at some point. Oh, but don't get me wrong, I'm not talking about myself but my friend," clarified Mrs. Desti.

Mrs. Desti continued her story. Once, when she was in junior high school, some male students were caught smoking on the school grounds. This had happened several times, leading to stern warnings from the school.

One morning, before the lessons began, it was discovered that some students were still caught smoking. Strangely, Mr. Dito, their homeroom teacher, neither prohibited nor scolded them. The smoking students were allowed to enter the class, just like the other students attending the lesson.

"Yes, finally, Mr. Dito gave up. Evidence is, he no longer scolded us or punished those caught smoking," whispered one student joyfully.

After all the students entered the class, Mr. Dito called the three students who were caught smoking. Let's call them Tio, Dio, and Dino.

"Kids, I won't talk too much. From now on, I won't stop you from smoking. Today, I give you the opportunity to smoke as much as you want. So, you don't need to study; just smoke in front of the class during the lesson," said Mr. Dito while taking out a pack of cigarettes from the teacher's desk drawer.

The three students standing in front showed happy expressions. It seemed like they couldn't wait to smoke as much as they wanted, especially with a kind-hearted teacher willingly providing cigarettes.

As the lesson started, the time for smoking began. One by one, cigarette butts started to pile up in the trash bin prepared. Unconsciously, the morning break for breakfast arrived. The moment one of the students was about to leave, Mr. Dito prevented him and asked.

"Where are you going?"

"To the cafeteria, sir. I want to buy snacks," a student replied.

"Why go to the cafeteria when there are cigarettes here? Besides, the price of these cigarettes is higher than your lunch money at the cafeteria. It's a shame if these are not finished," said Mr. Dito.

The three students fell silent. No one dared to take a step, let alone object. Time continued to pass. The lunch break arrived unnoticed. Towards the evening, the three students began to look tired, dizzy, and nauseous. Some even vomited.

The next day and the days that followed, no student dared to smoke, especially within the school premises. Since that incident, the three students suddenly quit their smoking addiction. The parents of those students were very grateful to Mr. Dito.

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