An attempt to convey a few of the thoughts & feelings of an expatriate teacher in sunny Singapore (and adjacent spots on occasion.)
Monday, March 2, 2015
Something To Smile About
Today, within the space of a couple of hours I was the recipient of a pecan pie (which I somehow refused despite the fact it looked delicious, so technically I wasn't exactly a recipient - more of a would-be recipient), a sort of two-dimensional model of a teacher accompanied by a battery which lights up the teacher where his heart should be, and a little notebook all the way from Granada in Spain. Two of the items are pictured above. All were gifts from folks at work - colleagues and students (or ex-students in the case of the battery-driven pedagogue. Actually I think they gave out quite a number of these devices to a wide variety of teachers, which just goes to emphasise the sense of giving involved.) Now I'm not saying this was a typical couple of hours, but I would venture to say that the generosity on display is typical of what goes on in my workplace. And I'm grateful for it - not because I need any of this stuff, but because it makes me smile.
(And in case any of my students happen to be reading this, please don't interpret the above as a particularly clever covert plea for more stuff. I don't need it. Your full attention is more than enough to ask for, and I'd like to assume I'm getting that.)
My vision: retirement and a life of leisure.
My mission: to manage decline gracefully.
My goal: to get to the end of the day in one piece.
Born in Manchester, I am at present living and working, as a teacher of English, in Singapore, having done so since 1988. My wife, Noshayati – whom I call Noi, and others call Yati – is Malaysian, and we travel frequently to her homeland, where most of her family live (in Melaka.) We own a house in Kuala Lumpur. My sister and family still live back in Manchester and we try to visit occasionally.
I used to work for the Ministry of Education in Singapore, but since 2007 have been employed directly by an independent school here. It pays the bills.
I converted to Islam in 1997 and find myself even more interestingly placed in the world as a result. I like occupying intersections. They afford useful perspectives.
I’d like to think I have a sense of curiosity which keeps me young. But the jury is still out on this. A good day is one on which just about everything seems interesting. Some days are not so good, but I'm not so naive as to believe I have any right to expect otherwise.
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