Reliving two years in ALI- Part One
I was waiting for this hour for last two years… whenever I burnt the midnight oil to finish an assignment… whenever I performed badly in a quiz… whenever I used to cut a sorry figure in front of my instructors for not being able to do my home work... I wished this suffering to end. I said learning Arabic is not my cup of tea… I argued I am perhaps too old a dog, to learn new tricks.
And when it ended, I felt strange… no more waking up early morning and rushing to the class, no more trying to finish homework in time, no more conjugations, verb forms, comprehensions, listening to Arabic news, learning connectors… I was supposed to feel free, supposed to be elated, supposed to gasp a breath of carefree air. But I did not.
Something is amiss. Terribly amiss.
When I was about to join Arabic Language Institute (Lovingly referred as ALI) in the American University in Cairo- one of the seniors in my office told me- be prepared to undergo the best phase of your life. But two weeks down the line- grappling with the mammoth task of differentiating between the sound of ص and س, I wondered what he meant. He smiled and said- wait and watch.
Some more time spent… still grappling, now with the ten forms of the verb, the conjugation, the relative pronouns, the fact that a verb changes its meaning with the preposition attached with it… it all was not only strangely outlandish, but also tormenting. Still no sign of the "best phase"…
In oriental philosophy… it is said that happiness is not overt, it is embedded with the Self… we just need to search for it, within our selves. The "Best Phase", like the proverbial happiness, was happening deep within me… and I was trying to search it in the drudgery of a classroom and heaps of sheets of assignment.
It would be an understatement if I say that these two years have changed me forever… they have not only changed me forever… they have made me more sensible a human being, more liberal a human being and more down-to-earth a human being.
Sure with the passage of time… and brush with the society I live in, I will be back to the old ways… of feeling superior with my transient achievements and feeling intimidated by the superior achievements of others… of being ethnocentric… of being prejudiced. But somewhere deep inside me, I will know that I am wrong and that I have been proved wrong in the ALI… I will know that successes are relative, achievements are relative… and life is all about identifying and following one's dream.
It is difficult to pinpoint the reason behind it all… for as I said, the entire experience was all too intangible… happening within me. But perhaps my interactions with different people over this timeline were a compelling reason behind it all.
There could not have been a better introduction to the language and life at AUC than the very first semester… for in this semester I met people who had a profound impression on me. People I simply adored and people who will forever be a part of my memories.
I still remember meeting my first Instructor Mariam Attia… a Danish national of Egyptian origin… on the very first day at ALI. I remember her passion for the language and her thirst for excellence. Born and brought up in Denmark, it would have been easier for her to take up a profession more attune with times… and yet she chose to live the hard way. I have profound respect for her. My tryst with ALI couldn’t have had a better culmination… after my last class was over; I received a call from her… congratulating me on finishing with ALI. Thank you Mariam.
I still remember Saeed Al Wakil… another instructor from the very first semester… one of the finest human beings, I have ever met. And… Mona Kamel, my very first Colloquial Arabic teacher- her indomitable spirit and zest for life.
Not to forget jamboree of a classroom I had in the first semester… there were two unstoppable Sultan brothers- half Egyptian half Libyan, born and brought up in Italy studied around the globe… they were truly global, fun loving and with a beautiful heart. Anne Mattson, a Canadian diplomat who always gave me complexes for her ease with the language. And the most wonderful of them all Xavier Lesaca- a Spanish simpleton, from the town of bulls…Pamplona. There was something very nice about him… his candidness; his simplicity would forever be etched in my heart. There could not have been a better introduction to Spain… for after meeting him, I fell in love with Spain. I promised- I will be there one day.
The second semester was harrowing for me… my wife's ailment deteriorated and she had to go back to India for a surgery… it was hard living without my family. My house reminded me of the bad phase, my class was my refuge.
I again had a wonderful set of Instructors… Inas Hafez- who worked so very hard with us to make things seem ridiculously simple… Abeer Hassan- who had an amazing way of teaching that somehow the words and lessons taught by her are still etched in my memory. Laila Familiar- by far the prettiest Instructor in the ALI, she was a Palestinian born and brought up in Spain… fiercely secular and independent minded. We had in her class some candid discussions on the Palestinian issue… she had the ability to call 'spade' a spade and criticize countries beyond the US, the West and Israel for the plight of the Palestinians. And not to forget my Colloquial Instructor… Nora Abdel Wahab, I just adored her… it was in her class that I spoke so much that she lovingly referred me as "Daushan"- one who makes a lot of noise.
And then not to forget the wonderful class I had… there was an American Nick Mickinski who epitomizes the proverbial US' out-of-the-box thinking… after the class, I heard that he went on a world tour to study Muslim communities in different parts of the world. And Maria Korkunc… a girl with an enchanting face, beautiful smile and a golden heart. She was an ethnic Turk… born and brought up in Norway… with panache for language learning… she also gave me complexes, donning the role of Anne Mattson from the last semester. I simply adored her.
And when it ended, I felt strange… no more waking up early morning and rushing to the class, no more trying to finish homework in time, no more conjugations, verb forms, comprehensions, listening to Arabic news, learning connectors… I was supposed to feel free, supposed to be elated, supposed to gasp a breath of carefree air. But I did not.
Something is amiss. Terribly amiss.
When I was about to join Arabic Language Institute (Lovingly referred as ALI) in the American University in Cairo- one of the seniors in my office told me- be prepared to undergo the best phase of your life. But two weeks down the line- grappling with the mammoth task of differentiating between the sound of ص and س, I wondered what he meant. He smiled and said- wait and watch.
Some more time spent… still grappling, now with the ten forms of the verb, the conjugation, the relative pronouns, the fact that a verb changes its meaning with the preposition attached with it… it all was not only strangely outlandish, but also tormenting. Still no sign of the "best phase"…
In oriental philosophy… it is said that happiness is not overt, it is embedded with the Self… we just need to search for it, within our selves. The "Best Phase", like the proverbial happiness, was happening deep within me… and I was trying to search it in the drudgery of a classroom and heaps of sheets of assignment.
It would be an understatement if I say that these two years have changed me forever… they have not only changed me forever… they have made me more sensible a human being, more liberal a human being and more down-to-earth a human being.
Sure with the passage of time… and brush with the society I live in, I will be back to the old ways… of feeling superior with my transient achievements and feeling intimidated by the superior achievements of others… of being ethnocentric… of being prejudiced. But somewhere deep inside me, I will know that I am wrong and that I have been proved wrong in the ALI… I will know that successes are relative, achievements are relative… and life is all about identifying and following one's dream.
It is difficult to pinpoint the reason behind it all… for as I said, the entire experience was all too intangible… happening within me. But perhaps my interactions with different people over this timeline were a compelling reason behind it all.
There could not have been a better introduction to the language and life at AUC than the very first semester… for in this semester I met people who had a profound impression on me. People I simply adored and people who will forever be a part of my memories.
I still remember meeting my first Instructor Mariam Attia… a Danish national of Egyptian origin… on the very first day at ALI. I remember her passion for the language and her thirst for excellence. Born and brought up in Denmark, it would have been easier for her to take up a profession more attune with times… and yet she chose to live the hard way. I have profound respect for her. My tryst with ALI couldn’t have had a better culmination… after my last class was over; I received a call from her… congratulating me on finishing with ALI. Thank you Mariam.
I still remember Saeed Al Wakil… another instructor from the very first semester… one of the finest human beings, I have ever met. And… Mona Kamel, my very first Colloquial Arabic teacher- her indomitable spirit and zest for life.
Not to forget jamboree of a classroom I had in the first semester… there were two unstoppable Sultan brothers- half Egyptian half Libyan, born and brought up in Italy studied around the globe… they were truly global, fun loving and with a beautiful heart. Anne Mattson, a Canadian diplomat who always gave me complexes for her ease with the language. And the most wonderful of them all Xavier Lesaca- a Spanish simpleton, from the town of bulls…Pamplona. There was something very nice about him… his candidness; his simplicity would forever be etched in my heart. There could not have been a better introduction to Spain… for after meeting him, I fell in love with Spain. I promised- I will be there one day.
The second semester was harrowing for me… my wife's ailment deteriorated and she had to go back to India for a surgery… it was hard living without my family. My house reminded me of the bad phase, my class was my refuge.
I again had a wonderful set of Instructors… Inas Hafez- who worked so very hard with us to make things seem ridiculously simple… Abeer Hassan- who had an amazing way of teaching that somehow the words and lessons taught by her are still etched in my memory. Laila Familiar- by far the prettiest Instructor in the ALI, she was a Palestinian born and brought up in Spain… fiercely secular and independent minded. We had in her class some candid discussions on the Palestinian issue… she had the ability to call 'spade' a spade and criticize countries beyond the US, the West and Israel for the plight of the Palestinians. And not to forget my Colloquial Instructor… Nora Abdel Wahab, I just adored her… it was in her class that I spoke so much that she lovingly referred me as "Daushan"- one who makes a lot of noise.
And then not to forget the wonderful class I had… there was an American Nick Mickinski who epitomizes the proverbial US' out-of-the-box thinking… after the class, I heard that he went on a world tour to study Muslim communities in different parts of the world. And Maria Korkunc… a girl with an enchanting face, beautiful smile and a golden heart. She was an ethnic Turk… born and brought up in Norway… with panache for language learning… she also gave me complexes, donning the role of Anne Mattson from the last semester. I simply adored her.
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