MashaAllah! My first day teaching at LAMB was the best teaching experience I’ve ever had! Things went smoother than a satin dress against a bottle of Greygoose… I got a photocopy of a text book last week and absolutely no preparation and training and I was the one teacher assigned to a class without a tutor or an assistant, so I was mildly nervous… the anxiety peaked when my supervisor told me my class was supposed to start at the same time as tonite’s Iftar and that it “would probably be ok” that I was wearing hijab and am not Christian, but “to be prepared for some resistance. Or at least a few attempts to convert me” lol. He also told me my nose piercing, chicly tied back scarf, and quirky personality would probably win them over. All of which did, but I thank God, FLY, and the intimidating kids of Garfield Elementary for such amazing classroom grace, rather than the nose ring, heh… it was magical! I tell people that I feel most alive and most ‘me’ when I teach, but I now know it’s entirely true. Happily, this is the one thing I am kind of good at, and I am just excited something I love has overlapped with an ability to do it well and help people in the process…alHamdulila! I am teaching two blocks and the first one is outstanding – their English is impressive and they are willing to engage in my pseudo-cheesy teaching style. The second class is older and it’s tricky for them to take someone younger than them seriously, but luckily their English isn’t strong enough for them to rebel…yet!
Coptic Cairo is really fascinating too. The school is inside a big Coptic church and when I was leaving it was dark out and the whole place glowed like some medieval castle. Only in the Middle East do blue and green florescent lighting go so well with religion! I’m going to try to take photos next week. Mar Girgis, where the church/school is, is very quiet and very interesting. I broke fast right before my class in the metro station and it was so nice: a little boy ran up and gave me a date and so I split my candy bar with him, another man gave me a packaged date-brownie (I guess the modern day, on-the-go adapatation to dates, heh) and it was just very comforting. Jon Hill, my supervisor was telling me how Cairo is not a city of diversity and it surprised me. I was attracted to Egypt because of its beautiful cultural pluralism, but I’m realizing the Christians are much more of a marginalized minority than I thought. It was awkward to hear the call of the muzzeins echo into the walls of the church, as if even the sounds of the majority religion could be escaped. Then again, there was a certain tinge of un-sacredness to the place too, as my supervisor continued smoking and cursing while entering the church yard. Sometimes I find Muslims hypocritical for altering their behavior SO drastically within holy places or during holy times, but I guess a distinction is still better than a complete disregard? Eitherway, I am very glad I decided to work in Coptic Cairo and am looking forward to spending Christmas and New Year’s with my students’ families and friends… Here's to another new adventure.
1 comment:
You need to save every word of these blogs and print them into a book after your year. It will be a best seller. You reached a milestone many of us never pass and learned you will be forever more a TEACHER. Fitting to have your name be Teachout. I hope it doesn't mean teach "out of our country....."
And your absorption of cultures, which most readers would love to have, is so incredible as to make me feel aniemic from my lack of lust for knowledge.
Your mom and I are incredibly proud of you....
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