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In the US today we are celebrating Thanksgiving, a day where we pause to be thankful (and then we shop tomorrow like there is no tomorrow – a day called “Black Friday” in preparation for the upcoming holiday season!  Personally, I avoid that at all costs)!

However, I’d like to pause for a moment to say THANK YOU to all of you who have read and supported Melibee Global over this past year.

While last year’s post about Thanksgiving shared more facts about the holiday that are not widely shared, I do want to take a moment to recognize how much I appreciate the ability to share my perspective on this site and to hear your feedback and ideas, especially when you challenge me.

Each year, when my family sits down around the table, we share what we are thankful for.  It is probably my favorite part of our own holiday tradition.

So today, I ask: What are you grateful for in your life?

Peace and heartfelt thanks,

Missy

Founder, Melibee Global

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I have previously written about the unique challenges of flying as a Muslim.  This week, I heard a fantastic interview with the musician “The Narcicyst” aka Yassin Alsalman, a Canadian hip hop artist whose family is originally from Iraq.  Alsalman was recently detained for 5 hours US border patrol at the airport in Toronto.  You may be thinking – ‘ok, so what, lots of people are stopped at the border?’ But this particular Canadian is a popular musician who wrote a song called “Phatwa” and made a music video ABOUT being stopped at the US border.

Here is the video – which offers a tremendous statement about stereotypes and the challenges of flying while Muslim:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Alsalman was on his way to a film festival in Washington DC when he was pulled aside and questioned. The border patrol took him to a holding area and he sat for hours.  They looked at his prayer mat and asked him if it was strange that he was an artist but he still prayed a lot. Alsalman was not sure of what to make of that comment. He simply felt that his faith was being questioned.  His pendant from Iraq was scrutinized and he was fingerprinted and photographed, not once but twice.  When he questioned why this took place a second time, he was told that the technology was acting up.

While at the airport, he was told not to look at his cell phone or to text anyone.  It turns out that his grandmother passed away while he was being detained, and his family was trying to reach him, but he did not dare take a chance looking at his phone during this time.

During his 5 hour wait, he said that another man was pulled aside for a review of his belongings.  This man carried in a large bag, it was opened and Alsalman saw a huge hunting rifle in the bag.  This person was allowed through within minutes, and all Alsalman could think about was the irony.  He wondered what would have happened to him had he transported a gun, even with a permit.

Alsalman describes the feeling of losing his identity during this process. From the minute he was pulled aside, he felt that his Canadian identity was lost.  His passport was taken from him and he did not even have the option to simply return home because he had no ID.

Alsalman stated that he made the music video (BEFORE he was stopped in Toronto) because he sensed that an Arab/Muslim life feels less valued than that of a Western’s life.

He said that many people laugh at some of the imagery in the video, but then stop themselves, realizing it is not at all funny.  He believes that it reflects the paranoia that many Muslims feel at the airport. Alsalman described the paranoia as, “Oh My God!  I’m going to end up in Guantanamo!”

This video is an excellent educational tool.  It can be used:

1)   As a vehicle to create dialogue about the challenges of being different or stereotyped when entering, and while in, the US.  It is also an excellent tool for examining slang using the lyrics of the song.

2)   In an ESL class – as there is plenty of slang to dissect in the lyrics.

3)   To discuss the politics of Guantanamo.

4)   In an exercise where students can create a video about stereotypes about other cultures, using an airport scene.  For example, what stereotypes might surface when an American enters a Muslim country’s airport?  Or a Canadian airport?

5)   To relay the power of music as a cultural informant.  How does music convey information about values, tolerance, roles of men/women, what we see above the surface vs. what is underlying?

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Let’s start out with a little “quiz”:

Question: Which of the following people was born in the United States?

Madeline Albright (former US Secretary of State), Andrew Grove (businessman at Intel), Jennifer Lopez (entertainer),Gene Simmons (from the band, KISS), Patrick Ewing (basketball player)

Answer: Jennifer Lopez (All of the others are first-generation immigrants to the United States: Madeleine Albright from Czechoslovakia, Andrew Grove from Hungary, Gene Simmons from Israel and Patrick Ewing from Jamaica.)

Immigrants.  Immigration. These are “loaded” words in the US. Oddly enough, unless your family was originally from the land that became the United States, you were an immigrant.

I recently had the pleasure of coming across an excellent 7 hour documentary entitled “The New Americans” that chronicles the immigrant experience of several new (US) Americans who are originally from Nigeria (Israel and Ngozi Nwidor/Barine Wiwa-Lawani come as refugees), The West Bank (Naima Saadeh Abudayyeh comes to marry an American), Dominican Republic (José Garcia and Ricardo Rodriguez come to play baseball),  Mexico (Pedro Flores and his family come for work) and India (Anjan Bachu comes as a tech worker on an H1B visa.)  Each of their stories is incredibly moving.  Here is a preview:

Click here to view the embedded video.

This film covers the immigrants over several years.  We learn about and see their lives prior to coming to the US.  We witness the pain of the Nigerians in the refugee camp.  We hear their ideas on what America will be like and how they cannot wait to experience a “hamburger.”  (Sadly, their first is from a fast food restaurant, and one cannot help but chuckle at Israel Nwidor’s expression as he takes his first bite!) We hear the hope in their voices, as José and Ricardo speak of their desire to make it in the big American leagues so that they can take care of their families in the D.R.  We see Naima and her family embrace and cry at the thought of her leaving her very close knit family. We feel their hope, their dreams, their pain.  And then we witness their adjustment, and those moments of confusion, elation, disbelief, sadness, and ultimately, some semblance of acceptance.  It is impossible not to root for these people and their families in the US, for their homelands and their new homes, for the families left behind.  Perhaps the mother of one of the Dominican ball players sums it up best when speaking about the challenges that her son faces:  “Poor people’s dreams are very deep things.”

This film is an outstanding educational tool that is supported by an excellent (and free) series guide and activity book.  The educator’s guide states that it is appropriate for 7th – 12th grades;  I personally think it will be an excellent tool for college level students also.  It is a film that allows us to talk about immigrants more deeply.  Now they have names.  We know their stories.  We see where they came from, what they had to leave (by choice or otherwise) and what limitations there are on their dreams in the US.  Students and teachers can spend hours discussing these films, given solid guidance by the tools provided on the PBS website.

The film also provides plenty of examples for the study of intercultural communication across cultures.  The toolkit also provides lesson plans for ESL students.

Here is the film, if you’d like to purchase it:

See larger image The New Americans (DVD) Director: Steve James, Gordon Quinn, Gita Saedi Starring: n/a Rating: NR (Not Rated) List Price: $49.95 USD New From: $49.95 In Stock Used from: $49.94 In Stock Release date January 27, 2009.

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Chinese born author Ha Jin.

I am a big fan of books written by those who are not born in the United States.  Not only is it a wonderful way to explore another culture, but it is a useful tool when examining your “home” through your own cultural lens.

I have recently discovered the writing of  Ha Jin, an immigrant from China.  His personal story is very moving- he was studying at Brandeis University when the Tiananmen Square broke out in 1989.  After seeing footage of the situation in China, he opted to immigrate to the United States.  He eventually went on to earn a PhD here and taught for many years at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia (USA). He is now a Professor at Boston University in Massachusetts.

While I just finished his short book, “In the Pond”, written in 1998, I am going to focus on his novel entitled “A Free Life.” This is his first book written about Chinese immigrants in the United States.  He tales the tale of a family that gets “stuck” in the US as a result of activities related to Tiananmen Square.  This is not autobiographical – but rather a book idea that sprung as a result of meeting the owner of a Chinese restaurant in the US many years ago.

Ha Jin’s main character, Nan, leaves university to work and focus on his dream of being a poet.  His tales of living the American dream are filled with the routine and mundane tasks of bill paying and going to work each day, yet each step in his journey is a lesson in cultural understanding.  The book is filled with reflection and humor. I read this several weeks ago and it still is resonating with me. Ha Jin’s writing leaves me with a better understanding of Chinese culture, but also of the human condition.  We all struggle on our paths, trying to live our dreams and deal in our realities. Something about his writing reminds me of one of my favorite authors, Chinua Achebe, author of Things Fall Apart.

I came across this thought provoking video (below) of Ha Jin speaking about “A Free Life.”  He reminds the audience that he did not write about his own experience in this book – for example, he did not drop out of graduate school or work in a Chinese restaurant. But he does talk about the emotion of fear in the immigrant experience.  This is a fear of not being able to return home – or that home is not ever going to be the same, fear of learning a whole new language and having to trust the processes that don’t make sense in one’s own life experience and fear of this new identity in the new homeland.

Ha Jin talks about the challenge of tackling the subject of language in his writing and how to present two languages into his writing.  He says that learning a new language comes with a childlike innocence and that he specifically uses and misuses the language to reflect this.  There is certainly humor in the meaning of many new American idioms and phrases, and he is a master at highlighting these.

He also talk about the importance of the physical land in his writing.  When he first came to the United States, his first impression was how different the actual land was in this country. He speaks about writing a letter home early on and how he expresses how his native country’s land was overused and that “nature was extraordinarily generous to America.” He clearly connects with the land and intended to write about it as part of the characters’ immigration experience in “A Free Life.”

One of the most beautiful pieces of his presentation in this video below is his commentary on the use of the word “homeland.”  Ha Jin says that in other parts of the world, people reference their “mother” or “father” land. But in the US we speak of a homeland, a place that is our land of origin AND a place where home physically is, and how the latter is primarily how the word is used now – even if it means “adopted homeland.” He feels that the word homeland is a very rich word in our language.

Ha Jin also speaks about immigrant authors not being simply “brokers of culture,” but responsible for also creating culture.  He cites the example of using old things to create new – such as how Chinese Americans created the fortune cookie, which is not really common in China, as a new phenomenon and twist for the American culture.

I would strongly encourage anyone interested in a learning about culture to pick up a copy of “A Free Life.” Meanwhile, check out this video of Ha Jin speaking in Boston about his novel:

Click here to view the embedded video.

See larger image A Free Life (Vintage International) (Paperback) By (author) Ha Jin List Price: $16.95 USD New From: $6.37 In Stock Used from: $0.25 In Stock Release date January 27, 2009.

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There has been a lot of conversation about the state of our global economy.  Each of us knows someone who has been laid off or is underemployed.  Recent graduates continue to look for employment, whether or not in their field of study. The pressure is mounting with unemployment payments running out, school loan payments due, and the simple challenges of every day living expenses.  It is a tough market out there and for those who do have a full time position, we are particularly grateful for the relative security at this difficult time for so many others.

Several years ago, I went through a very difficult medical situation that resulted in my doctor recommending that I leave my full time position. (Click here to learn more about my experience getting ill from mold at Rockland Community College, where I was the Director of Study Abroad.) I was so incredibly ill at the time that I didn’t have the energy to think through what this meant financially;  I just wanted to feel better.  Once I did resign, I spent several weeks in bed focusing on healing. And when I came out of the fog, I had two choices:  1)  to panic about my lack of income and react from a place of disadvantage or 2) to use this as an opportunity to explore other “sides of me” – the interests that I have that I could never tap into fully. And like many of us, my excuse had always been that my inability to properly explore these areas was due to my full time work keeping me so ‘busy’.

It was not an easy time initially.  Actually, that is really an understatement;  it was one of the scariest experiences in my life.  However, ultimately, this dark time became one of the most profound learning experiences that I could ever have imagined possible.  Upon reflection, I am so very thankful for the gift of time to explore other interests and dormant talents.

I am a firm believer that we each have tremendous potential.  One of my favorite quotes is from Marianne Williamson: “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be?”

In the US, we take great pride in our work as a large part of our identity;  we often ask each other what we “do” vs who we are.  This is part of our culture and not surprisingly, we are firmly rooted in this identity. We often “reason” with ourselves that we are trained and experienced in one particular skill set as it relates to international education.  We are Designated School Officials (DSOs.) We are Study Abroad Directors. We are Academic Advisers.

Williamson’s quote serves as a reminder that if we do not take the time to explore other sides of ourselves, we will not have the chance to find our light, to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous in other areas of who we are.

As international educators, we possess many skills that support our successes in our previous job descriptions. We are great DSOs because we are detail oriented and are strong communicators across cultures.  We are Study Abroad Directors because we understand how to administer programs that are academically challenging in a different cultural context, we understand safety requirements, we are creative researchers, etc.

After I left my job, I sat down a made a list of many other interests that I “had never had the time to explore fully”. (Or at least that is what I thought.) I also reflected upon the tangential skills that I possessed and what kind of  work I could do that would tap into these and highlight my talent. And frankly,  I realized that this list was something that I HAD kept in the dark, because perhaps I really was frightened to tap into the light and see my own range of capabilities and allow them to shine brightly.

This list included:

- teaching ESL

- dedicating time to consulting as a primary source of income, allowing me to craft my day as I chose and to work on projects that I valued

- training and instructional design.

I was able to create an action plan for each of these key interests.  I had taken graduate level coursework in ESL and quickly was able to interview for a position teaching 2 classes at a local ESL school. I had 2 classes and found out that I loved being in a classroom!  I also realized that I didn’t love the hours of lesson planning as much as I loved the students and their infectious energy.

While I had done some informal consulting, I used this opportunity to formalize Melibee Global Educational Consulting by creating a web page and determining its core services.

The path to training and instructional design came through a somewhat unexpected tool. I found a “gig” on Craigslist with an incredible local training company that needed assistance with a Fortune 500 client’s projects.

While these revenue sources did not add up to my previous salary and I was paying a hefty COBRA payment, I was able to pay my bills and live without daily fear that it wasn’t going to be “ok.” During this period I was able to shift to the “light”; For me, this meant making an income doing activities that I enjoyed, with people who were interesting and who challenged me to dig deeper.  What started out as feeling as if the floor had been taken out from under my feet ultimately became a meaningful and beautiful journey that allowed me to carve out an existence that simplified my life and created a true period of balance and joy that I had not experienced before.

I eventually met with a dear friend who is a life coach and with her guidance,  was able to fine tune my transformation.  One of the books that served as a guide during our conversations is Cheryl Richardson’s “Take Time for Your Life.” This book is an inexpensive resource for anyone who is employed, but wants to transition out of their current source of income AND for anyone who is currently unemployed and anxious to use this time to tap into the light, allowing us to explore other sources of income from a positive place instead of a reactionary one.

And for those of you who are interested in exploring ESL as a source of a income, the TESOL Annual Convention will take place in Boston from March 24 – 27, 2010.  Perhaps it will be the start of a new journey!

Whatever your path, do your best to reframe the experience. Instead of “looking for a job” you may be embracing the journey and seeking the light.

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See larger image Dreaming in Hindi (Hardcover) By (author) Katherine Russell Rich I have finally finished one of my new favorite reads, a delightful book entitled “Dreaming in Hindi: Coming Awake in Another Language” by Katherine Russell Rich.  Why do I love this book?  Probably because it would be my dream to be able to take off to India and study Hindi for a year. This is exactly what the author did and it resulted in a book that is part journal and reflection, yet loaded with recent research in second language acquisition.  Ms. Rich writes about her intensive Hindi program, politics in the region, her cultural informants, travel experiences, homestays, her classmates, and the idea of who do you become in another language/culture.  There is much to digest when reading this book, but she writes with intent, seriousness and a dash of witty humor. There was so much that struck a chord with me in this book.  Ms. Rich writes about her early days in India, when she is living with a large family of Jains. (Jainism is an ancient religion in India that emphasizes non-violence to all beings in the world.) She writes about her early days of speaking in Hindi and how the family all sits down for dinner and asks her very simple, polite questions about the food, night after night.  Rich writes: “Dinners go like this till one day, playing badminton in the drive, I give an automatic high-five.  The gesture startles everyone, shuts down the action. From then on, I high-five often. Did I like the soup? High-five! Did I like the lentils? High-five me more! They laugh so hard when they slap my palm, it ends all further discussion.” This had me in tears, as I can completely relate to the American automatic need to high-five occasionally.  I recall an experience recently, despite all  of my years in the field of International Education, where I attempted to high-five a student who had recently arrived in the US  for university study.  I put my hand up, awaiting an enthusiastic hand slap in return, only to have the student continue with her remarks as if nothing was happening.  I caught myself quickly and instead moved my hand into my hair, as if to move it out of my eyes or something rather unnecessary. Ms. Rich’s description of the automatic American high-five had me in stitches, especially because it became a bonding moment for her and her Jain family, one that eventually allowed them to move past the basic “how is your dinner” kind of questions that we all get when we’re abroad and attempting to practice another language. Ms. Rich’s humor shines through when she writes about her orientation to the language school which took place in Hindi – with the occasional warning coming through in English. Ms. Rich writes: “The orientation leader, Vidhu, states: ‘If you see a group of sacred cows, we ask that you not disturb or frighten them as that can make them rush this way and that and possibly brush you. Last year cows strained a girl’s leg. She was a dancer.’ Vidhu warned, and then I was desperate to know what else they’d said.” This had me laughing out loud and seriously wondering what I’ve covered in orientation to the US that has had my students mystified, horrified or hysterical!  (I’m guessing that the US health care system is the section of orientation that sends most of my students over the edge – it seems so very ridiculous to them when I describe how much a visit to the hospital can cost.  Come to think of it, it seems most ridiculous to me also!) Much of this book with Ms. Rich’s personal experience as an intensive language student with fascinating research on language acquisition.  One simple statement that deeply resonated with me referred to the landmark of progress in language acquisition.  Ms. Rich writes: “Some people say you’ve turned a corner when you can make jokes,” the linguist Ellen Bailystok says.’Some say it’s once they’re translating , others when they dream in the language. People put up landmarks of progress.’ “ While I am not fluent in another language, I have studied Spanish, Italian and French and have taught ESL for several years.  I have seen my students’ joy when something “connects.”  And as a language student, I recall those landmarks of progress.  While living in Switzerland during graduate school, I had to navigate through the local food market every few days. I really wanted to order turkey from the deli counter, but didn’t know how.  After several weeks, a friend taught me the phrase in Italian and I practiced it daily, awaiting my big moment at the market.  One of those landmark moments, for me in Italian, was successfully ordering some turkey at the market. Today, I pose the question:  What are YOUR landmarks of progress? Take a moment to enjoy this playful video by Ms. Rich.  Note the high-five at the end! Click here to view the embedded video. List Price: $26.00 USD New From: $1.50 In Stock Used from: $0.04 In Stock

]]> http://melibeeglobal.com/2010/01/dreaming-in-hindi-landmarks-in-progress/feed/ 1 http://melibeeglobal.com/2009/12/prisencolinensinainciusol-what-does-english-sound-like-to-foreigners/ http://melibeeglobal.com/2009/12/prisencolinensinainciusol-what-does-english-sound-like-to-foreigners/#comments Mon, 21 Dec 2009 05:07:12 +0000 Missy Gluckmann http://melibeeglobal.com/?p=224

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I am one of those people who listen to radio stations in languages that I don’t speak – to me, it offers an opportunity to explore different sounds, figure out a few words, and hum to some good music.

While I have taught ESL in the past, I had not come across this brilliant video.  It starts with a skit:

The student asks the Professor why he wrote a song “that has strange words that don’t mean anything.” This version does not show the entire skit, but the Professor does go on to say that people aren’t communicating enough so he wrote this song and the title is meant to mean “Universal Love.”

This song, Prisencolinensinainciusol, was written by Adriano Celentano from Italy in the early 1970s.   He wrote it using gibberish that was meant to sound like English, giving us an idea of what it might feel like to not actually understand English.

This first video clip is the partial skit and song.  When you play this first clip, what English words do you think you hear? How do you react to not knowing what is being said?

Click here to view the embedded video.

This next version is a “translation” of the “sort of English” into English. How did you feel about these “lyrics”?  Did they reflect any words you thought you heard?

At the end of the day, I found this to be a really fun exercise and actually found this tune to be rather catchy. It is a bit of early rap/funk and I think it will be playing in my head for days!

I’m looking forward to hearing your experiences with Prisencolinensinainciusol!

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I have periodically taught Second Language (ESL) throughout my career. I’ve taught in classrooms and tutored individual students, but I’m quite certain that the students teach me more than I could ever teach them.  They come from a variety of countries and life experiences, sharing information about their daily routines, political issues in their home countries, gender roles and cultural norms.  They are very inspiring and humble, and are typically very dedicated to learning the English language.

One of my most memorable students was the spouse of a non-immigrant expatriate on assignment. Angela is from Germany; she and her husband and their young daughter were relocated to Westchester County (NY) by his employer. Although she did not know anyone in this community, Angela went out every day and practiced what little English she knew at local shops and the library.  She quickly joined the local gym in an effort to meet people.  Her daughter went to school for several hours each day and rapidly picked up English without any formal lessons.  This little four year old girl walked into the classroom, as fearless as her mother, and absorbed her surroundings like a sponge.

I do not speak German, so Angela and I initially relied on non-verbal cues to communicate with one another early on. Something as simple as playing “Simon Says” with Angela and her daughter became a vocabulary lesson.  Sometimes during our lessons we would read letters and forms that were sent home by her daughter’s school. Many of these were simple reminders about holidays, school parties and activities.  However, there were  the occasional health letters that entered into our lesson.  Angela asked me to help her with a letter that served as a reminder not to send children to school if they were “vomiting or had diarrhea.”  One can only imagine how awkward it is to explain these two ailments to a non-native English speaker.  Needless to say, non-verbal communication was key!

As Angela’s English improved, I assigned a short book for her to read while at home.  Then, at each lesson, she would read aloud and we would discuss the plot.  It was a tricky challenge for her, as she was exploring new letter combinations that forced her to use her mouth and tongue in a different way than she would in German.  One of the biggest challenges for Angela was to master the “th” sound. For Germans, the tendency is for the tongue to reside inside the teeth when attempting this sound, forcing more of a “z” sound (e.g. “zis” vs “this”.) I reminded her to stick out her tongue, and she and I giggled often as she made a face to get this difficult sound from her mouth.

I taught Angela for nearly two years and I am humbled by how quickly she progressed. She went from being a woman who was afraid to answer her phone to one who can articulate her thoughts, feelings, wishes and desires with confidence. I was honored to contribute to her ability to navigate the waters of this new culture.

Teaching ESL has reminded of important life lessons when living abroad:

1.  Be Fearless:  The point of being abroad is to see and do something that you would not experience at home.  Staying in because you don’t know the language  is not an excuse to miss out on the adventure. Get out, get a bit lost and listen to your surroundings. Throw caution to the wind!  At the very least,  you’ll have a great story to tell later!

2. Shift the View: You’ll see the world through a new set of lenses and it is important to embrace this new view. When I lived in London, I remember observing all of the buildings so carefully, as the city was so much older than almost anything I had seen in the US. Every time I stepped out of my flat (apartment), I experienced visual overload. It was wonderful! When I did eventually return home, I was able to see the world through a new set of eyes, which made home a ‘new’ place too and helped tremendously with the re-entry shock.

3. Humor: Be open to making mistakes and be willing to laugh when you make them. Laughing at yourself in these situations is definitely more fun than crying and often a better coping technique.

If you are interested in learning more about Teaching English as a Second Language and the places it can take you, the 44th Annual TESOL Convention and Exhibit will take place in Boston, Massachusetts from March 24 – 27, 2010.