My Opening Remark on UN Day Celebration(LatePost)

For the sake of these kids, I protect the pic by closing the eyes

The last November 15 was a big day for our school since we celebrated UN DAY. We knew that it's a little late, but  we just couldn't make it at the right moment. We thought the concern was that we tried to celebrate it. 

It was different from last years celebration. This year celebration, we focused on the dance of the country we represented. My class got middle east and I chose the dance from southern part of Egypt I got after searching ones in YOUTUBE. 

And... I had that honour to deliver opening remark on the D-Day. Here is the short speech of mine.

"Peace and God blessing beyond you all.

First of all, I’d like to say thank you to the head of the school and the chairman who give this honorable chance to represent this school and to share a little bit about what we know about UN Day.

And we’d like to say welcome to our honorable guests and parents. And to our beloved team mates, the teachers and students, you did beautiful team work.

There are 196 countries in this world. All the people live in different culture, come from different races, practice different religions and beliefs, but we tend to forget that we have one purpose in this life, to live in peace and harmony.

We can’t actually deny that so many wars and tragedies we have today, in this world due to our incompetency in understanding those differences. We’ve come to realize that all those differences among us are beauty and bless, but at some point, in our daily lives we tend to act the other way around. We do labeling, judging, blaming people not because what they do, but from their race, countries, or religions.

Today, we want to lead our kids to a stage in their lives where they actually aware of these cross cultural facts. We want our kids to be wise in living life and face the differences, and later on when they grow up, to deal with conflicts that may be caused by the differences and solve it in healthy way. We want our kids to understand that we are all one. We are all family.

No matter where we are from, no matter what color our skin are, no matter what religion we practice and no matter what state we stand in believing something. We want these kids to believe that those have nothing to do with the way they treat people.

Today, these kids are going to representing the dance from different part of the world. Here, we can learn something that it is obviously not that hard to understand other people, just like it is not that hard for those kids to learn the dances from other cultures in less than two months. We all can live in harmony if only we can start to understand that we are all born different. Even ears on one head are different.

Last but not least... I’d like to quote a statement from a very remarkable man who is known for his wisdom and tolerance. He said these words for Round Square Campaign October 1996, in South Africa. “The challenge for each one of you is to take up these ideals of tolerance and respect for others and put them to practical use in your schools, your communities and throughout your lives” __Nelson Mandela

Though we come from different countries and practise different religions, WE ARE ALL ONE PEOPLE

Funny Parts of Teaching English as Foreign Language

credit to http://learningworksforkids.com

As English in Indonesia, especially in Aceh is still condidered hard subject along with Math, some people think that English is an "exclusive" language. So many Indonesian parents spend millions to make their kids able to speak English like a native. In fact, only a few of these parents who are able to speak English. at this point, all the responsibility are on teachers.

I teach in two places right know; an international school and a course. The first one mentioned is a school where international system is applied and aall students and teachers are expected to speak full English except in some subject like Bahasa Indonesia, Sosial Science, Citizenship, Arabic/ Mandarin. The kids are trained to acquintaance the language by speaking it not by teaching it as a language.

However, it causes the language to be in a mess structure you have ever heard nowhere. Since this kids speak Bahasa Indonesia in their homes and Bahasa grammar is so different compared to English, sometimes I find the kids speak english with Indonesian grammar or vice versa. Here are the examples:

If one can not do or say something they suppose to say: "I can't see it" or "I can't do it"

but in reality what I heard from most of the kids are: "me not can see" or "me not can do"

It takes about 2-3 months for me to fix this and always remind them if they say this.

In other case, they will read word in Bahasa Indonesia in English pronunciation. This one is never be disaster except for the one and only Bahasa Indonesia teaacher in the school.

At the very worst case, especially the kids who are "lucky" enough to have parents who can speak English with them all of the time find it's hard to speak in Bahasa Indonesia. In Bahasa Indonesia subject, one had ever asked me (when I was around), "do you know how to say 'market' in Bahasa?". At my very stupefied expression I asked back, "You really don't know it?". 

The funniest part is mostly happened in my course. They don't go to Bilingual school, so they speak a very good Bahasa Indonesia. Too good that it sometimes influences their English. 

There was a moment when I asked my students to translete 2 - 3 sentences. I rarely do this thou. But wwhen I do, I always find myself laughing so hard along with the kids of course.

That day I asked my students to translete "I will be at your house around 6" into Bahasa Indonesia.

One of my student, the most innocent look in the class, translete it to be "Saya akan kelilingi rumah kamu selama enam kali = I will surround your house 6 times". It was so hilarious.

credit to http://thefeedingdoctor.com

This language teaching obstacle never be a burden for me. Honestly, I like it to hear the kids trying so hard to deal with two languages at the same time, and I prouly say that most of them did it. At last, it's great to learn from your own mistakes, is it.

The Perks of Being Freelance Teacher #1

Yesterday, I was teaching in one course I am employed in the town. There were only three 12-year-old boys who came to the class. This is a small class of 5 actually. I was in kind of bad mood and not that excited in teaching that day. My bad..

I asked them too do the task in the workbook when they started asking questions of words and sentences they didn't understand. Once they finished, I asked one of them a question since this one always be the fastest and the brightest in this class. "How old are you now?" I asked this boy who drew his attention right away to me. "12 years old miss...", he said. I started to ask him "Imagine yourself 15 years from now.. What will you be? and where will you be?". He didn't take much time to think and answered me in a snap, "In campus, studying". And then I confirmed.. "No...27 you will suppose to finish your study.. You be graduating your study that time. 

He added  "I will be in a campus, finishing my master degree in Stanford University!". This answer slapped me on the face and at the same time I mesmerize this young boy motivationn and dream. He stated his drem proudly. He even know where to go at this very young age. Oh Boy... I was smiling so wide that time, and kept saying "Awesome" in a number I can't remember. It was sure that I got this goosebump. I was astonished. This boy somehow told me not to stop trying. I couldn't stop link that GOd shows His Mighty that time. Wuhuuuuuu.... 

That  gave me an idea how to continue the class. THese boys are active boys. They like to move around the class. Then I decided to ask them to write 5 questions on a piece of paper and have it rolled. I was involved in this actvity. Then I gave each of the papers to each of them randomly. Every kid had to ask each question to anyone they like. 

I didn't know that this activity could be that great. We stood and moved around the class while doing this activity. To my excitement, even I myself enjoy this activity.

Here are their questions, mine is included of course.

Question me questions!

How we understand life as we understand ourselves

It’s been a while that I didn’t write. I mean not this kind of writing. I did write personal statements, study objectives, study plans, and all the craps like application form and stuff. Yeah... I did craps for my life. Instead, I kept doing it. I was trying to kill my joys inside me, trying to convince myself that I do love these kind of things. In fact, I’m exhausted.

There were some points in all past months this year, I wanted to scream,, so loud that I could loose my voice. But, I never did it. I did scream, so loud and painful.. Inside. I complained, felt sorry for things I kept loosing, for chances that slipt out of my hands like sands. I hate it to feel that way but I did.

All the past year I think I learned and acknowledged too many things; From loosing and letting go, from falling in and falling out, from remembering and forgetting, from cursing to praising. I know it I am not perfect. Nobody is.. yeah.. Perfect is nobody. Once you are perfect you become noone to be worth alive. You are death when you’re perfect since life is imperfection.

I saw too much, and knew too much that sometimes my mind and my heart could not take it all. It caused me dying. And these hard times that I got was somehow a precious lifetime experiment He ever sent me. He does want me to improve my whole life.

The last months I keep suspecting myself for thinking that maybe I’ve changed. I’ve changed to be someone I really did not want. From any jealousy I felt for people around me, from the good things people around me got, but I didn’t. But this night I’ve come to realize that there’s nothing wrong with that. That’s so human that every one expect something  better to be happened in his/her life. What is all wrong about that!? Why did I curse myself for feeling so.

And those jealousy was nothing wrong, not untill it shapes you to someone who is not actually you. And that jelousy almost drowned me the last two weeks. All the chances offered by government did give me terrible days, not dirrectly anyway, but it killed my days. While so many people took part and I reminded silent, my beloved one thought I was an idiot that I kept this brilliant chance to go astray.

For the sake of heaven, Never in my life I do something I do not like. Never and ever. But why do I have to? For letting they think I am a successful woman then? Who define that for whom? Your friends? Your neighbours? Your parents? Teachers? Counterparts? If so... Poor us! What life we are living now.. Noone can define something good for you but you. But why is it happened all of the time? Why do we let ourselves go out of the paths we built back then when we were so young.

This afternoon in my class my students asked me two questions out of ten questions I let them ask to each other. Instead, some were asking me. What is success for you and does it have something to do with happiness? I was kind of surprised by my own quick answer that led me stay in silent for a while after so. For me.. Success is when I stop wishing and wanting things to be happened in my life and pushing myself so hard to get it. My student laughed as I didn’t get my words either. Then I corrected my words quickly, “getting higher education”, I said. But does it really it? what then? How if I get it soon? Am I success?

Then I think my first answer is the right and honest one. Success is when you start thinking there is nothing wrong with your life. You feel grateful and that’s it. That is the success life as you know it. and happiness? Happiness comes along, always.

Some people who do not have faith in something superior than anything in this world might say, “You live only once, do whatever you do and do not regret for it. Everyone is gonna die though”. Somehow I agree with this idea, but I do believe in after life and strongly have faith that everything you do is gonna be questioned latter on when you die. So there is judgement day, at least for me, or you.. The ones who believe. And that only means one thing for me, a somewhat religious woman. It is a form of emerging these two idea of “you live only once” and “you need to consider everything you do coz you have to be responsible for it”. This is a point where sometimes I curse myself of being jealous to people. And this is also the reason why I always (I try) can alternate it to be something positive. To be my fuel of being a better person.

So... do we really know what life is? Or do we actually aware that it is us who can keep the evil inside us come out as evil or in more intelligent way, as gooddeed. Jealousy is like a hammer, but when you use it wisely along with chisel, you can turn an unuseful log to be a beautiful work of art.