First Edition

Words of Wisdom

 

I have learned silence from the talkative, tolerance from the intolerant, and kindness from the unkind, yet, I’m ungrateful to those teachers.

Without forgiveness life is governed by an endless cycle of resentment and retaliation.

You cannot prevent the birds of sorrow from flying over your head, but you can prevent them from building a nest in your hair. 

When one door to happiness closes, another opens; often we stare at the closed door and miss to see the one which has just been opened for us.

Pain makes you stronger, tears make you braver, heart-breaks make you wiser – so, thank the past for a better future.

Success is not fame or money or the power to bewitch, but that to create something which springs from your most hidden self.

                                                                                 Basil Hassoon, ELC teacher

What is so special about this painting? 

 

What is so special about this painting? An ordinary landscape guarded by the light of stars, a small village surrounded by hills plunged into sleep?! Here and there a light shining, witness to some human tragedy or happiness. This is the material that great art is made out of. If you want to find out more about the painting and its author go to “painting about.com”.

Adriana Ghoul, ELC teacher

Freedom Writers – A Movie Review

Freedom Writers is an American movie based on a true story. It takes place in the mid “90’s. The movie is about a young English teacher, Erin Gruwell, who teaches students from different ethnic backgrounds in a public school. 

At first, she seems very enthusiastic towards her new job and she tries to cooperate with the English teachers in the high school in order to improve students’ level. It turns out however that her colleagues are not that helpful. She also finds out that her students do not want to learn. They have other issues to care about. Most of them are members of different dangerous gangs. She starts working day and night in order to change the way her students think, act and deal with each other. She discovers more about their daily lives by giving them the opportunity to write in their diaries. She works after school to buy them books to read. This leads to the destruction of her marriage; she is confronted with a difficult choice that between her job and her husband. She succeeds in changing her students’ lives, but ends up with a divorce.

The movie provides a realistic image about the difficulties new teachers face in public schools. It also shows that being a good teacher requires hard work and patience. Teachers need to know things about their students’ way of life and their social background in order to bring about changes. Teaching requires dedication and sacrifices. In this movie, the teacher sacrifices something she really loves for something she really adores. There are priorities in life and one has to decide what the most important thing in one’s own life is and do whatever it takes to achieve it.

 Rahma Kmail, ELC teacher

  

 Who is Virginia Woolf ?

Virginia Woolf, the British writer, member of the Bloomsbury Cultural Circle is one of the most versatile writers of the 20^th century. Virginia Woolf brought prose to a completely different level of artistry proving that imagery and emotions can be expressed in everyday language provided one turns inward to explore the fascinating world of the self. In her works, she experimented with the stream of consciousness initiated by Proust and brought to unequalled mastery by Joyce. This is a link to a unique recording in which the writer speaks about the power of words. (You Tube –The Recorded Voice of Virginia Woolf talking about Craftmanship).

 Adriana Ghoul, ELC teacher

The Flowers I see

The flowers I see

a black and yellow bee

and the blue sea

to stay and not to flee

Attractive and colored flowers

While passed the hours

don't even think of tears

don't you see those beautiful colors?

Life is a beautiful thing

all you need is hope and some pink

and you'll fly without wings

just believe, say I can, and think

Begin your day with a smile

look at the great sky for a while

somebody told you to start running

because your dreams are nearer than a mile

if you can see, think, and smile,

then high you will fly

if you can bear, withstand , and resist,

then you are stronger than to cry

for your pains will say goodbye

so  try, try, try!

Lana Jarrar, English Department student

Spring

Spring

the blue sky and the golden sunshine

in the sky I drew a line

darling, one day you'll be mine.

Spring

all kinds of flowers, red, yellow, white, blue

your soul is flying. I believe you

and you make me happy, this is true.

Spring

the birds' twitter and the butterflies

make it look like a real paradise

look into my eyes, no more lies.

Spring

the spirit only hears a beautiful sound

where there is no sadness or cloud

I was very happy when it was you I found

Lana Jarrar, English Department student 

  

It was Like a Miracle

He was lying on his back in the grass, watching the fireworks explode in the sky. Jack had black eyes and straight black hair dark as the night. His skin was white as the moon. He was a gentle and tall young man. Jack was seventeen, and he was the youngest in his family. He had one married sister and a 22-year-old brother. Jack liked fun and humor, and he had a beautiful, bright smile. His cheeks were soft and dimpled. This young man was pampered, and his father loved him more than himself, so he gave him everything he wanted. Jack was brave and self-confident, so if one of his friends had an argument, he would hurry to help him. Besides, he was a kind young man, and everyone liked him. Jack was the most intelligent student in his class.

He lived with his family in Washington. Their large, modern house was nice and comfortable. It consisted of six large squared rooms, a large kitchen where they shared their family meals, and two verandas. The house had a wonderful garden with many kinds of tall trees and fragrant flowers. The family used to spend most of their time there in order to enjoy their time.

One day, everybody was happy because it was a New Year's Eve. Jack was in his garden with his family, and he enjoyed his time watching the fireworks explode in the sky. He hoped that day would be the beginning of a beautiful new year. While he was chatting with his family, one of his friends called him. Tom told Jack that he and some of his friends planned to race their motorcycles that evening. Tom invited Jack to join them, and eventually he was able to convince him. Jack didn’t tell his parents, because he was certain they would not allow him to do that.

"They even don't know that I own a motorcycle," Jack murmured.

While he was thinking and talking to himself, his mother interrupted him.

"Who phoned you?"

"Oh, it was my friend, Tom. He invited me to visit him tonight", Jack told his mother while he was smiling.

"Okay, you can go, but don't be late because will celebrate together later tonight", his mom replied.

That evening, Jack rode his motorcycle and went to the race area. He felt as if he was driving at the speed of light. Suddenly, as if it came out of nowhere, he hit a rock and crashed. Since Jack was in a hurry, he wasn't wearing his helmet, so he lost consciousness after a few seconds. A shocked crowd gathered around him and tried to help. An ambulance arrived after a few minutes and took him to the nearest hospital a few blocks away.

The doctors  who treated him called Jack's family and told them that their son had an accident. His family quickly drove to the hospital only thinking that maybe he had a few broken bones. Upon arriving they immediately inquired the doctor about the condition of their beloved son.

"Is he ok?”, Jack's mother asked with trembling voice.

"I'm sorry”, the doctor replied with a pale face, “but he isn’t. He’s had a terrible accident and he wasn’t wearing his helmet”.

"What happened to him?", the mother asked. She started crying.

""I am going to be honest with you", the doctor said gravely. ”He has brain damage due to skull fractures and severe bleedings. Right now he is still unconscious. He might slip into a coma".

“We didn’t even know he had a motorcycle. He should have told us!”, Jack’s father shouted at no-one in particular.

"Will you be able to save my son's life?", Jack's mother asked.

"We hope so", the doctor said. "We are trying to do everything we can.”

What started as a dream that night turned out to be a nightmare. The family was shocked and they could not believe what they had just heard. Jack's mother burst into tears of sorrow. Then, many relatives started coming to the hospital, and others called to ask them about Jack. Jack's sister, Julia, decided to stay at home to take care of her children. She was scared, so she called her husband, who was with her family in the hospital in order to know what happened to her young brother. When he answered his phone, he wasn't brave enough to tell her the truth. Yet, he felt he had to tell his wife the truth.

Although the doctors were pessimistic, Jack's family wasn’t and they never lost hope. Jack stayed in a coma for three months, but then gradually he started to heal. One day one of the doctors called Jack's father and told him to come to the hospital  because there were many things he needed to discuss. Jack’s father noticed the doctor was smiling.

"I have good news for you".

"What is it?", Jack's father wanted to know.

"Your son started to heal. ‘He’s retrieved consciousness".

"This is great!", Jack's father could barely hide his enthusiasm. "When can I see him?”.

"You can see him after one hour if you want." the doctor answered with a sigh of relief.

"When will you let him come back home?"

"He has to stay in the hospital one more week for observation. This is because we want to do some final medical examination. Just to make sure that he is okay."

When the family heard the news, they thanked God and started crying. They shared it with everyone who wanted to hear it that a miracle had saved their son’s live. They invited their friends, neighbors, relatives, and the doctors to a dinner party in their large beautiful garden in order to thank them for everything they did and to share their happiness with them. It turned out to be a good new year after all.

.

Nisreen Mahmoud Allawneh, English Department student

Legends of the desert

I met Yasser Hareb during an encounter in Paris. We had a long discussion about the last bridge standing intact in a world increasingly divided: culture. Despite all that we see in front of us, we still hold on to some common values, and this can help us understand our neighbor. I asked Yasser to write some stories from his region for me, which I transcribe abbreviated below. Why are you crying? A man knocked at his friend’s door to ask him a favor: “I want you to lend me four thousand dinars because I have a debt to pay. Can you do that for me?” The friend asked his wife to gather together everything they had of value, but even so it was not enough. They had to go out and borrow money from the neighbors until they managed to get the full amount. When the man left, the woman noticed that her husband was crying. “Why are you sad? Now that we’ve got ourselves in debt with our neighbors, are you afraid we won’t be able to repay them?” “Nothing of the sort! I’m crying because he is someone I like so much, but even so I had no idea he was in need. I only remembered him when he had to knock on my door to ask me for a loan.” The code of hospitality Two men were crossing the desert when they saw a Bedouin’s tent and asked him for shelter. Even though he did not know them, he welcomed them in the way that the conduct of nomads dictates: a camel was killed and its meat served in a sumptuous dinner. The next day, as the guests were still there, the Bedouin had another camel killed. Astonished, they protested they had not yet finished eating the one killed the day before. “It would be a disgrace to serve old meat to my guests,” was the answer. On the third day, the two strangers woke early and decided to continue on their journey. As the Bedouin was not at home, they gave his wife a hundred dinars, apologizing for not being able to wait, because if they spent any more time there, the sun would become too strong for them to travel. They had traveled for four hours when they heard a voice calling out to them. They looked back and saw the Bedouin following them. As soon as he caught up with them, he threw the money to the ground. “I gave you such a warm welcome! Aren’t you ashamed of yourselves?” In surprise, the strangers said that the camels were surely worth far more than that, but that they did not have much money. “I am not talking about the amount,” was the answer. “The desert welcomes Bedouins wherever they go, and never asks anything in return. If we had to pay, how could we live? Welcoming you to my tent is like paying back a fraction of what life has given us.” Generous in death A man was traveling from one city to another when he heard that a ferocious battle had taken place and that his cousin was among the wounded soldiers. He rushed to the place and saw that his cousin was on death’s door. He offered him a little water from his canteen, but just at that moment another wounded soldier beside him groaned, and the cousin asked him to give the water to his neighbor. “But if I go over there, you may not survive! All your life you have been always so generous!” Gathering his last ounce of strength, the wounded man replied: “That’s another reason to be generous, now that I’m about to die.”

                                                                                          Paulo Coelho 

What are Polyglots ?

A polyglot is a person who is able to speak and understand many different languages. The word comes from the Greek “polyglottos”, which literally means “having many tongues”. We can also say that such people are “multilingual”.

There are many reasons why certain people speak more than one language. For example, there are numerous countries in the world with more than one official language. In Lebanon, both Arabic and French are used. In the case of Belgium there are three official languages: Dutch, French and German.An even more extreme illustration is China, where there are eight official languages with many more unofficial ones. Some scientist believe that no less than 292 languages are spoken on the Chinese mainland. Thus, sometimes you might have to be able to speak more than one language if you want to communicate effectively with your neighbors.

Some people grow up in multilingual families.In our globalized society, it may happen that your parents were born in different countries. If your father was born in the United States and your mother in Palestine, there is a chance you will end up having both English and Arabic as your mother tongue. In this case, you are bilingual.

Other people simply enjoy learning new languages. They think it is a fun and easy way to spend their time. One famous example is the British man Daniel Tammet, who has learned 10 different languages. One of those languages is Icelandic, which he has mastered in only one week. However, Daniel has a condition called autism. This enables him to memorize things much better than any other human being. Aside from learning languages, he is also known for having recited the number pi (π) from memory  up to22,514 digits.

The good news is that you don’t have to be a superman like Daniel Tammet if you want to learn an new language. Practically anyone can do it, as long as you are willing to spend enough time on it. Furthermore, researchers strongly believe that speaking multiple languages makes you smarter in general. This is because you are activating your brain in a more efficient way. Even better, they also claim that the more languages you learn the easier it becomes to study a new one. Think of it as a sport. The more you practice, the better you will become.

Like sport, it is always good to start at a young age. If you have been playing football ever since you were a child, chances are higher that you will be a star when you are an adult. All the same, learning languages is less of a strain when we are younger. This is why we have no problem learning our mother tongue, while at the same time we are struggling with new languages once we get older.

Is it too late to start now? Of course not! As mentioned before, basically anyone can learn a language and there are no disadvantages. Speaking more than one language can make you smarter and it will definitely turn you into a more sociable person. Think of all the places you can visit and all the people you can talk to. So, what are you waiting for?

Simon Van Rietvelde, ELC teacher

Videos:

Daniel Tammet talks about autism and learning languages on the Late Show with David Letterman

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fjBENKFVYM

Alex Rawling speaks 11 languages.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZLJmv-5k88