A year ago, I sat on the floor. The sole teaching tool, a whiteboard, hung on the wall. Fourteen or so men and boys gathered around me; this was my class. I don't remember what we learned about that day, if it was simple verbs or nouns. I'm sure we asked "What did you do today?" because we always did, and I'm sure the answers were "I worked" or "I went to the store" because they always were. My students were attentive, dedicated, and positive. As I was putting on my shoes to leave, a resounding chorus of "Happy Birthday" echoed around their home. My co-teachers had taught them, and they sang with grins, a group that I have no doubt wanted not just my birthday, but me, to be truly happy.
With so much stuff in this world, society often tells us to feel sorry for those who have less than we do. However, when we focus on what a population does not have, we often forget how much they can offer us. From the refugee students I taught in Jordan, I learned how to best wish someone a happy birthday. I learned gratitude, a healthy pride, and how to accept help. I learned a profound ability to take care of each other. I learned community, drive, and dreams. While materially my students had less than many, in my eyes, they also had much more. I believe the first step toward social justice, or one of them anyway, is when all people recognize this. When people know the beauty of their own culture and the depth of their own intelligence. I run into so many kids who are taught they are trouble, taught they are stupid, taught they are behind, taught to fail. This is what drives inequality. Stopping this will end hunger more than a food pantry ever could.
So this year, for my birthday, I'm not asking friends or family to give a handout. Of course, I want kids to have coats and the hungry to have food. But my focus right now, is that my former students and friends in Jordan get a good education. My priority is that they learn so they can express their already valuable opinions. I want them to attain their goals so that they can see as I do the great impact they have on the world. In the past year, classes have moved out of the house, and are now taught in a school. There are more people, women, and children, of a wide range of age and ethnicity. They have chalkboards, photocopied textbooks, and other simple supplies. The dreams I have for this project in another year? Endless. For a truly happy birthday, merry Christmas, or just being a good citizen, if you haven't, think about donating a small amount to the cause. If you have, good for you. You are one step toward living in a better world. Trust me, these people know how to make it.
With so much stuff in this world, society often tells us to feel sorry for those who have less than we do. However, when we focus on what a population does not have, we often forget how much they can offer us. From the refugee students I taught in Jordan, I learned how to best wish someone a happy birthday. I learned gratitude, a healthy pride, and how to accept help. I learned a profound ability to take care of each other. I learned community, drive, and dreams. While materially my students had less than many, in my eyes, they also had much more. I believe the first step toward social justice, or one of them anyway, is when all people recognize this. When people know the beauty of their own culture and the depth of their own intelligence. I run into so many kids who are taught they are trouble, taught they are stupid, taught they are behind, taught to fail. This is what drives inequality. Stopping this will end hunger more than a food pantry ever could.
So this year, for my birthday, I'm not asking friends or family to give a handout. Of course, I want kids to have coats and the hungry to have food. But my focus right now, is that my former students and friends in Jordan get a good education. My priority is that they learn so they can express their already valuable opinions. I want them to attain their goals so that they can see as I do the great impact they have on the world. In the past year, classes have moved out of the house, and are now taught in a school. There are more people, women, and children, of a wide range of age and ethnicity. They have chalkboards, photocopied textbooks, and other simple supplies. The dreams I have for this project in another year? Endless. For a truly happy birthday, merry Christmas, or just being a good citizen, if you haven't, think about donating a small amount to the cause. If you have, good for you. You are one step toward living in a better world. Trust me, these people know how to make it.
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