To Teach and Learn

‘’Why do we sometimes write about ourselves and expect people to be interested? Because our stories are usually not about ourselves. It is about everything, and everyone, around us.’’ – Within the Realm of Happiness, Dasho Kinley Dorji. I first met Sonam Gyeltshen five years a go when I first came here to Punakha HSS as a teacher. We were new to the school only as teachers having been here as students before. He came on transfer from a middle secondary school but it was my first placement as a teacher. He got a transfer, I later found out, because he had some problem with the principal who according to him was not so nice. Sonam Gyeltshen AKA Jackal is one of a kind and like any nickname-story he has his story too. When studying at Zhemgang High School he danced to a Michael Jackson song, and he got the name Michael Jackson. Over time Michael Jackson became Michael Jackal and by the time I met him he was only Jackal. Jackal is an interesting man, someone you would call a...

Picture from Google Image. People say size matters and this line literally exhibits me or, you may say, is exhibited by me. I am short, skinny, and tiny and I am a teacher with students who are all bigger than me. But, I do find some use for my size/height.  I crack height-jokes in my after noon classes to shake off sleep in my students.   I talk a lot about my wife in my class and my students ask, ‘ ‘isn’t she taller than you sir?’’ I say she is, and she makes me feel like Tom Cruise. When I slow dance I rest my head on her soft bosom and that I have to be on my toes when I kiss her. They laugh and I continue my lesson with students who are more awake. There have been many instances where my size deceived people.  But my favorite is the one I share with most of my friends. It was sometime in 2010, beginning of the year when the class ten results were out. The previous year I taught in class ten so I wanted to know how my students did their exam. ...

The chill curls around my bare knees like a pussy cat. I shiver with the intense smooching it gives me and struggle with the correction that is before me. I think about going out in the sun but I am so used to working on my table that I can't make myself leave the familiar setting. So, I continue. The variety of the hand writings, the ideas, the errors and the presentations always overwhelms me. So, before I begin I make sure I am in a good mood because I want to be fair and mark what they(students) deserve. But I am only human, so sometimes I can't help but lose myself to anger. Anger is destructive   and it manifest in my restrain in not wanting to tear, crumple, abuse and destroy the answer script before me. This happens, and I feel ashamed of myself for losing my cool. One may say this is natural and it is only normal. But, I know they are wrong and so am I in becoming angry with the paper before me. English paper correction is the most challenging. I know most tea...