hands wet in the red clay of language

The one thing that everyone in the world needs is a teacher. People survive without healthcare, without lawyers, without material commodities, without technology…but they all need mentors, someone to show them and teach them about the world.
I am so happy that I have been able to fill this role for these girls. They impress me every day with their insight, strength, and intelligence. I’ve become good friends with some as well, and I know that I will keep in touch with them and that we will mark a new generation that seeks to empower and educate women all over the world, working across cultural barriers or country boundaries.
I had my last tutoring session today…the girls didn’t even need to come at all, but they ended up staying for almost two hours, just talking with me. I asked them whether they could help me learn to be a better teacher, and to give me feedback. They told me that I was a perfect teacher, that they loved my class, that I talked to them like real people and earned their respect, that they looked forward to my class even though they used to get tired at that time of day, and that they want me to come back as soon as possible to teach them more. I was so touched, I almost cried. They said that the discussion in my class was better than in any of their other classes, and one girl said that it had seemed like a women’s studies class, which is interesting because I hadn’t really intended it that way, but I guess that it really was. We covered so many different topics and ideas and theories, I’m surprised we packed it all in, and I appreciate how much effort they put into it, even though it was a remedial class. They even would stay for extra time, as long as I could spend teaching them. I managed to tell them how much they meant to me, and how much they had influenced me, and they told me that I am part of a larger sisterhood that will always welcome me with open arms, in any of their homes in so many different countries.
Then, they wanted to ask me about America and about my college, and about my life story…it’s only fair, because I’ve been having them write essays about their homes and about their meaningful memories or greatest aspirations, etc etc. I’ve been requesting electronic copies of all their work, and taking portraits of them to pair with their writing, so as to compile a comprehensive publication for our class. I also did this project with Mary’s Reading and Writing section, and I’m so impressed with the work they produced.
I’ll recount some of my lesson plans: We read the section in Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet, on teaching. They had a hard time with the figurative or antiquated language at first, but then got the hang of it and really liked it. I had them write reaction essays to it, either responding to that section, or this quote: “Half of what I say is meaningless, but I say it so that the other half may reach you.” The students teased me that I do that when I write thirty new vocabulary words on the board every class, but also said that I do a good job of providing synonyms and contextualizing words for them. I reassured them that sometimes even my American friends don’t know what I’m talking about…but, they also got the message that a good teacher “does not bid you enter the house of his wisdom, but rather leads you to the threshold of your own mind.” And they understand the core issues I wanted to impart to them, the most important vocabulary words…integrity, catharsis, immutable truth, relativity and subjective circumstance, and how to make one’s words sing on a page…the power of language as the most integral tool, communication and education as the means to change the world…I hope I practiced the teaching philosophy of “the teacher who walks in the shadow of the temple, among his followers, gives not of his wisdom but rather of his faith and his lovingness.” I do believe that they know how much I care for all of them, and wanted to get to know them each as individuals…
They also wrote essays on the place they would most like to travel to in the world; these were really fascinating to read, and I especially liked the ones about America. They have strange perceptions of it! I’m especially excited because one of my favorite students, an Afghani girl named Marvah, will be coming to Boston for a women’s leadership conference sponsored by Harvard. We are working together to extend her trip by a few days, so that she can come to New York City and I’ll meet up with her there, and show her around. She also showed me pictures of her home, and I know that I want to go to Afghanistan as soon as I can figure out a way to do it. She and the other Afghani students have all invited me there, and I hope that we can construct some kind of joint project together, perhaps for next summer. I’ve been helping them with the two-week workshop they’ve designed for this summer, and I know that it has the potential to grow and start something really powerful.
I also assigned an essay about the social problem each student feels most passionately about, and what they would change and how they would do it if they could. I’ll be uploading examples of these and other essays as well. We discussed feminism a great deal, and used a text I found in the CPGC publication from last year, written by another Bryn Mawr student named Sophia Guida. It’s called “Doing what we can,” and is about her interview with a woman named Ibu Mut, who had to take a job in Saudi Arabia as a domestic helper to feed her family. She was treated little better than a slave, and had to leave her family and home. She, like many women in that village and also in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, are forced to live this way. I’ll quote directly from her article: “Many countries in other parts of Asia, as they undergo modernization and economic growth, also experience an equalizing of gender roles. As more and more ‘empowered’ women enter the workplace, their societies still expect someone (preferably another woman) to manage the household chores. Thus, the wealthier Asian nations have sought labor from the poorer nations to do the housework that their high-powered career women do not have time for. Hence, the Ibu Muts of the world have left home to seek these jobs as maids in career women’s homes…as women begin to enjoy greater access to what was formerly a man’s world, what happens to the work that is still “women’s work,” but needs to be done by somebody? As one woman gains the privilege of a good job in the man’s world, does a poorer woman have to take her place and do the work that she now does not have time for? Is this what ‘feminism’ looks like for a person like Ibu Mut?” Obviously, this article sparked a great deal of discussion, and many of the girls come from villages where this phenomenon takes place. It was fascinating to hear such different perspectives (first-hand) on feminism, and a far cry from what I’m used to learning in a classroom at Bryn Mawr.
The next class, we read an article about the Women’s Garden in Kabul, Afghanistan. The article was from the New York Times, and I asked them to respond to it in essay and in discussion. We debated whether the need for a garden is an admission of failure in itself, as well as the pros and cons of having genders separated. This is particularly pertinent at a women’s institution (both Bryn Mawr and AUW), and in a society where men and women have completely different social circles and strictures. This conversation then led into talks about repression and sexual violence, which was really difficult to talk about but also fascinating. They are so naïve and so wise beyond their years, all at once…
The article about the Women’s Garden was also sent to the entire student body, not just my class. I had forwarded it to some of the Afghani students, and this was a really meaningful email I got back from Parwanna:
“Dear Sarah,
My life was completely different in Kabul. I have never visited any entertainment places like Women's Garden in Kabul, but I have heard about it from my classmates and friends. I am really interested to visit this place and talk to my sisters in a secure place.
However, women members in my family are not supposed to go outside and enjoy their lives. I am also one of that women of my family. Honestly, no one from my family has visited it yet. However, this time 'Enshalla' I will take all of my women members of my family to this Garden. Because, this garden is only one place, where all women of Afghanistan from all nations and languages come together and share their problems . I love to go there and see Afghan women's united and their freedom while sitting under shad of the trees without scare and veils. I will go this time for visiting this place, if I could , I will take pictures and I will write about my visiting of Women's Garden in Kabul to you.And I believe that this time I will go because I have learnt how to act as an independant and educated woman.
I will be in touch with you in any cost. I will always write to you. Enshallah. I also hope to see you in my sweet homeland Afghansitan. Yeah, we will have a project together in Afghanistan next summer.”
As you can see, each class is full of meaningful contributions and invigorating ideas. I respect these women so much, and I look forward to seeing where their strength and intellect will take them. I’ll describe other classes soon, but these few sessions give you an idea…