Chapter 13 — Seeds After the Rain

Two weeks after the emergency meeting, the Environmental Club arranged an official meeting with the school board to present a plan to retain the garden. This is considered the most important opportunity before the final decision is made at the school board meeting.

"We only have one chance to present in person," Quynh Nhu said during the preparation meeting, her face showing tension. "If we can't convince them this time, all previous efforts will be meaningless."

The whole group spent a whole week carefully preparing for the presentation. Anh Duong and Mr. Binh compiled all the data on the garden's activities over the past two years - more than thirty Biology practical sessions took place here, more than two hundred students participated in extracurricular activities, the number of plants, and the vegetable output used in school parties. Thao and other members prepared a small display corner with soil samples, tree samples, and before-and-after images for visual illustration.

Gia Huy, as the communications manager, compiled the collected petition - the final number reached more than eight hundred signatures, nearly half of the entire school's students, along with more than fifty signatures from teachers of different subjects, who took students to the garden to visit or used this space for supplementary teaching activities.

"I think we should let Gia Huy present the part about the support of the student community," Quynh Nhu proposed in the final rehearsal. "You are the one who directly campaigns and understands people's reactions best, and..." she hesitated a bit, "everyone in the school is also more familiar and trusts you."

Gia Huy nodded in acceptance, although he was a little nervous. This will be the first time he stands before the school board as a representative of a stance and a specific goal, instead of simply being a student who wins the hearts of his teachers thanks to his sociable and polite personality as usual.

The presentation took place on a Friday afternoon, in the school board meeting room. The principal, along with two vice principals and a representative of the school's parent association, sat on the opposite side, their eyes serious but not lacking in listening. Quynh Nhu opened with a presentation about the history and educational value of the garden. Her voice was much steadier than in the previous inter-school exchange because she was used to the pressure of presenting in front of a crowd.

When it was his turn, Gia Huy stepped up and took a deep breath before starting. "Dear teachers, I am Cao Gia Huy, a member of the Environmental Club. I would like to share one thing - three months ago, I joined this club just because I needed enough volunteer hours for a scholarship application, with no intention of sticking around long term."

The whole meeting room was a bit surprised by that frankness. The principal slightly raised his eyebrows, but still listened silently.

"But after just a few sessions working in the garden, I realized that this is not just a place to grow vegetables and flowers," Gia Huy continued, his voice becoming more and more steady. "This is where I learned how to patiently take care of something over time, where I witnessed the sense of responsibility and sincere love for nature among the people in the club, and more importantly, this is where it brought real value to many other students in the school, as the eight hundred signatures of support that I will present below can demonstrate."

He presented in detail the process of collecting signatures, recounting some specific stories from students who signed - a 10th grade student shared that the garden was the only place at school where he felt relaxed amid the pressure of studying; An Art teacher said that many of the best paintings of students in school competitions were inspired by garden scenes.

"I understand that the need for parking is real and urgent," Gia Huy continued, moving on to the proposed alternative plan that Mr. Binh suggested. "But I would like to propose that the school board consider the vacant land near the side gate of Le Duan Street as an alternative. We have done preliminary research, the area of that land is even larger than the current garden, and can better meet the school's long-term parking needs."

After the presentation, the board of directors asked a number of questions about the cost of renovating the replacement land, about the ability to maintain the garden in the long term, and about whether the Club could mobilize more resources on its own to reduce the budget burden on the school. Gia Huy, Quynh Nhu and Mr. Binh answered each question calmly and carefully prepared in advance.

At the end of the presentation, the principal nodded, his face softening somewhat compared to the initial serious expression. "Thank you for preparing a very enthusiastic and well-founded presentation," the teacher said. "The school will seriously consider your proposed plan, especially the alternative land. However, I must be honest, the final decision depends on many other factors, including the opinion of the school board and budget capacity. Please continue to mobilize more support, it will be helpful to the decision process."

Stepping out of the meeting room, the whole group breathed a sigh of relief even though there was no certain result. Quynh Nhu turned to Gia Huy, her eyes filled with respect. “Your presentation was great,” she said. "I never thought a speech could make the principal think twice."

"It's thanks to the data and careful preparation of the whole team," Gia Huy replied, but inside he couldn't hide his pride. This was the first time he realized that the ability to speak, the wide acquaintances that he used to quickly integrate into each new school, could now be used for a much more meaningful purpose — not just to make himself liked, but to actually create a positive change for something he cared about.

On the way out, the group stopped by the garden for a moment to inform a few members who could not attend the presentation. Teacher Binh, accompanying the group, stopped by the mango tree and looked at Gia Huy with rare respectful eyes.

"I have to admit, your presentation was much more convincing than I imagined," the teacher said, patting his shoulder. "Not everyone has the ability to stand in front of the school board and speak confidently and convincingly like that. It is a precious talent, you should cherish it."

"Thank you, teacher," Gia Huy replied, a bit shy at the compliment. "I'm just saying what I really think."

"That's why it's so convincing," Mr. Binh said, smiling. "People can easily tell the difference between a memorized speech and a speech that comes from the heart. You showed the school board the latter."

Quynh Nhu, standing nearby listening, nodded in agreement. "You're right. When you talked about initially only joining because of volunteer hours, I was a little worried that the principal would think our club wasn't anything special. But it turns out that honesty made your speech much more trustworthy."

"I didn't mean to say that either," Gia Huy laughed, scratching his head. "It just came out naturally."

The whole group laughed together, the atmosphere was completely relieved after many stressful days of preparation. Anh Duong suggested that the group celebrate with a round of tea. Although the final results were not yet finalized, at least today's presentation went much more smoothly than expected.

That evening, when he got home, Gia Huy lay in bed, reviewing the entire presentation in his mind, feeling a deep satisfaction that he had never experienced after any other achievement in his life — not because he was praised, but because he truly stood up for something he believed in, using what he had to make a difference. He wondered if this was the feeling people call "finding a purpose", a feeling completely different from the superficial satisfaction he usually gets from everyday social compliments.

He opened his phone, intending to text Quynh Nhu a good night, but after typing again and again, he still wasn't satisfied with the words. Finally, he just sent a simple line: "Thank you for trusting me with that important presentation. See you at the garden Tuesday." A few seconds later, the phone vibrated with a response message, with a smiley face emoji and the words: "Thank you for not disappointing me. Good night." Gia Huy looked at that message for a long time, a small smile appeared on his lips before he fell asleep with hope for good things ahead.