My Colleagues

I think we've got a good group of teachers here at ISC-E. I can already sense a faint divide between the older and younger crowd, which I suppose is all-too natural since people generally identify best with those in their own age group, but I have hope that the divide will disappear in time rather than grow stronger because older or younger, I think we are all past that high school mentality of cliques and exclusivity. There are about 6-7 girls in their early- to mid-twenties, and they all seem like a fun bunch with good intentions, and interestingly, two of them seem to have recently emerged from a major self-discovery phase brought upon by that all-too common catalyst called love. This last part I gathered from the story each of them shared with me, one about her fiance, and the other about a past relationship.

Another of the younger girls is married to the math department head. She has that beautiful pale Lebanese complexion with dark dark curly hair and a French accent. I wondered where the French accent came from, and she told me that the French occupied Lebanon sometime in the '70s? '90's? Can't remember. So it is a common second language there, although superseded by English now. She studied math in college as well and like me, has an interest in learning the Kurdish language during her stay here, so I think we might become study buddies, and even just buddies! Buddies...What a strange word.

There are a couple women in their 30's who I like very much because they seem mature and real, not phony at all. I don't know if this is due to their age or the fact that they are British. Maybe both. Speaking of the Brits, I might as well mention the rest of them. There is the man who always wears a fancy black suit and these funny theatrical-looking rectangle-framed glasses with two metal lines making up the earpiece instead of the usual one. He looks and sounds like he came straight out of a British comedy like Monty Python, it's just terrific! In fact, he is a native Kurd, but was raised in the UK I think??? There is the Scotsman who always has this look on his face like he's thinking of a really funny joke that no one else in the room gets or is even aware of. It's like he has these special rods and cones in his eyes that tint everything he sees in a funny light, hence that constant grin on his face and laughing eyes. Maybe that's just the way his lips are shaped, like Maggie Gyllenhaal.

There is Lone, who is Danish, dresses and sits like one of those women in photos from the 19th century, and doesn't talk much in class nor at dinner until you initiate conversation. I like her a lot, she seems kind and gentle, and very intelligent though she does not advertise it due to her introverted nature. She has lent me her Kurdish grammar book, yay! Now I can figure out how this language actually works, not just random words like choni, bashi, wara, supas, etc, etc. There are 2 Lebanese guys in their 30's, and the one thing that is most note-worthy about them is that this is the first time they have ever left their home country in all their 30 years. (And why they chose Iraq as their first expedition abroad, we have to wonder.). According to them, Lebanon is an amazing country with tons of things to do, amazing rooftop lounges and nothing ever shuts down, so you can party 24/7. Possibly, this is why they never left. I will have to visit Beirut during one of my vacations now.

Then there is the older crowd, who are the quirkiest. One of them is Pakistani, and she is very very proud of her conventionally successful family members (eg: it's her sister the doctor, not just her sister). She adores and misses her family very much and enjoys showing us the pictures she brought of them. Her initial plan was to go back to her home country, and I asked her why in God's name would you want to live in a battlefield like Pakistan (I know, I know, pot calling kettle black!), and she said she's at that time in her life when she just wants to be close to her old friends and family. Makes sense. Totally understandable. There is the man who has traveled to 23 countries, and don't you forget it! The woman with 3 cats living in her apartment, which I did not find out about until one day I rang her doorbell to borrow some detergent and smelled cats as soon as I stepped inside. There is the woman who spends all her time and self thinking about, caring for, and worrying over the other teachers. She projects perhaps a bit too much of herself onto others, I think, but in essence, she is kind. With regards to the older crowd, one has to wonder what they are doing here. It makes sense to see spontaneous 24-year-olds singles looking for adventure before getting tied down to one place with family, but what of the older crowd? What is their background story? Are they divorcees or never married in the first place?

Besides the teachers, (and there are more than the ones mentioned above!), there are administrators and the workers (construction, engineers, etc.). But more about them later. I will only mention that one of them, Rami, has an adorable 1.5-year-old, and I mention this not because they are major characters in this “school play”, but because babies are noteworthy solely by their cuteness factor.