First and foremost, I must apologize for the long absence in blog writing. I have simply been trying to gather my thoughts and experiences, but in the process, things to ME seem to not be different and worth writing about any longer. of course, leave it to my wise father to remind me that perhaps to ME it is no longer unusual, but for everyone else, it still is. and my stories can be quiet interesting from time to time. so here goes.
so I guess I haven't really fully introduced you what I exactly DO at site. I am, for lack of a better word, a teacher, tho i do not teach. I aid teachers in new methods of teaching that involves the students and accommodates their different learning types. I work with Pratom 4,5,6 (grades 4,5,6) and the students are absolutely wonderful. unfortunately, they haven't had a lot of experience in english, for a lot of their english teachers simply dont know english. strange, i know, but thats thailand. that's by no fault of their own...they just didn't need to up until a few years ago. english, i believe, was NOT entirely mandatory or taken as seriously. that is the simply reason for it. so im also teaching english to the english teachers. I work at two schools, tung yai and ban chang, though at this time, im trying to drop chang and work only with tung yai. and in only a few month, I have already seen a VAST VAST improvement in not only the teachers english, but the students as well. teaching is my primary project here, but it is also up to me to create my own secondary projects. I have thought thru many ideas, from health and sanitation projects, youth development and organization, and working with an orphanage(which im hoping to still do eventually), but im currently trying to take on an art and culture project. it is simply astonishing to me how little people (in the rural villages) know of the outside world. Their distaste for foreign food is phenomenal (i tried to feed kids spaghetti and red vines...not simultaneously...and they almost gagged on the taste!!!...and yet when they try and feed me fried bugs or papaya salad marinating in fermented fish paste and i graciously refuse, they simply do not understand why i cannot digest such culinary delicacies.) astonishing. but aside from the food, they have no or limited knowledge in the different cultures, music, and art. SO i have taken it upon myself (and with my coteacher from tung yai - who is the art teacher from doesn't know art at all) to create a class focusing on such things. We have only had one class so far under the official heading of the class, but the idea was birthed from when i showed my classes clips from BBCs Planet Earth. both students and teacher sat wide eyed with gaping mouths at the world beyond theirs, a world they believed they would never see. One student even asked me, when showing them a clip about penguins, if penguins die...i told them everything living, even such interesting and foreign animals as penguins, dies...they were shocked. again, no blame is placed on anyone for such naivety...they simply did not think it thru or know or understand. BUT, now they do! The first official class i helped conduct was very interesting! I brought in different paintings by various artists, such as Monet, Dali, van gogh, Rembrandt, Seurat, and pollack. during the class period, i told them about still life, portrait and self expression. Then I asked them to find an object and without a ruler, use their eyes and creativity to draw that object as a still life project. They were thrilled. Then at the end of class, I handed each student a picture of a painting and told them to begin creating their own interpretation of the painting. Not only will i be teaching these students about art and culture in this class, but also about empowerment and creativity in life and their endeavors. We went over a little bit about what they wanted to do in life, and then told them that they didn't HAVE to be a rice farmer just because they are from a poor village in rural thailand. They can be a doctor in england, they can be a soccer player for spain, they can be prime minister of thailand, if they worked and studied hard and took themselves seriously (but not too seriously) and had the confidence in themselves that i have in them.
But i've also had a lot of time to contemplate about who i am, what i want to do, why i am here...I have been doing a lot of reading, writing and painting at site, even tho at times i feel as if my muse and inspiration is gone. art is not a large aspect in the lifestyle of a PC volunteer in rural thailand at the time. or perhaps just where i am. that can be frustrating, but I refuse to allow the departure of such a large and influential aspect in my life. to be perfectly honest, I haven't established a strong connection or bond with the people in my village. They know me and are indeed welcome into my home, an invitation that most children but few adults take advantage of. But I am their prized farang (foreigner) and can seem to do no wrong. I am an amiable enough person to have made some relationships, but nothing too significant for me, though perhaps quite the opposite for them. I am a private person, though admittedly sometimes too gregarious for my own liking with my fellow volunteers. It is just very hard to built absolute trusting relationships with anyone, much less people you've only known for a few months. Through this I most regrettably learned of the hardships of trust. I hold dear to those relationships i have that fall under the category of trusting. I am quite content to do the job i've set out to do, and do it well, but keep to myself simultaneously. i simply not prefer not so much a quiet life, but rather a life of hard work, thought, reflection and experience.
"I wanted movement and not a calm course of existence.
I wanted excitement and danger and the chance to
sacrifice myself for my love. I felt in myself a super-
abundance of energy which found no outlet in our quiet
life." Tolstoy.
Despite my general separateness, I have learned quiet a bit from the people in my village. Specifically, one verdict concluding from two opposing aspect of one facet in rural thai life. I am surrounded my endless flat rice fields, extending past the horizon 360 degrees; thus my village largely consists of rice farmers. The facet in which i speak of is that of labor. the farmers, whilst working, work and diligently, and do earn their low but hard earned pay. but, in contradiction, they work less than one would imagine. They delight themselves in spending most hours of their day sleeping in hammocks or drinking whiskey and talking. The conclusion I have drawn is this: all work must be hard, in hear that it would otherwise be unethical, all money earned for yourself must be well and ethically earned. Thus, the moment i obtain a job and can live off my well earned money, the sums i receive every month from Hawaii will be decidedly given to charity there after.
And thus are the thoughts and experiences I have at the moment. I must resume my reading and indulging in the anonymity i have here in Bangkok, for it ends tomorrow. i will hopefully be able to post more frequently!
adieu!
