Yes, it's really true. I was very fortunate as compared to many of my schoolmates in that I had the opportunity to pursue my studies up to tertiary level whereas most of them dropped out of school to work at very young age.
That was mainly because I had a father who placed his children's education above everything else. He tried by all means to let all his children finish studies in universities, local and abroad. If not for his concern and persistence, our lives would be completely different today.
My father believed strongly that education was of paramount importance due to the fact that he himself had suffered the fate of being deprived of a formal education (poverty and poor education facilities after World War II). Though through self-study, he became literate and later, a successful businessman with good achievements, formal education was something he missed in life and had lived to regret it. And for this reason, he used to regard people who had opportunity to receive good formal education as the most fortunate people in the world.
As he explained to me, to provide a child with good education was far more better than to leave with him a big fortune; in his own words : "whatever knowledge gained in 'your brain' could not be stolen, robbed or destroyed in your life-time, unlike materialistic assets which could be 'lost' easily or unexpectedly ....."
Whatever it is, we can't deny the fact that with good education not only we acquire useful knowledge and important values in life, it's a great help to social mobilities as job prospects are better with higher qualifications/skills and recognized certificates/degrees.
For this, I am always thankful to my father....
