Service Learning Reflections, Part 3

Connection to Outside Reading- What’s in a List? By Jack Goody

During one of my tutoring sessions, I had the honor of talking to “A.” A’s story inspired me and challenged me to think about a world that is outside of my pampered, “America is always right” paradigm of thinking. He was a Christian refugee from Iraq. I was surprised to learn that Saddam Hussein and his regime had protected his family, because as A said, “We didn’t cause any trouble and ultimately Saddam didn’t want to have any rebellions.” After the fall of Hussein, his family was forced to flee to Syria to escape the persecution he faced from his own people. He and his brother and their families were sent to the United States, his sister headed to Australia, while the rest of his family crossed back into Iraq. He had not seen any of them in several years and the lines of worry crossed his face. He was polite, courteous and eager to learn, not at all the image of the angry violent Arabic men and women that are splattered all over our media outlets.

He spoke proudly of the language he, and his family spoke. He said it was the oldest language still in use today and it was very similar to Aramaic. Aszure (my spelling is incredibly incorrect) is the language used by the Christian people in the Islamic world. They see it as a way that distinguishes them from the rest of that world. He was quick to say he was not Arabic, he was Aszury. I was so embarrassed to sit and not know anything about this beautiful history. I thought back on the words on Jack Goody in his piece What’s in a List. He writes, “We tended to underemphasize the achievements of societies that employed earlier forms of writing and the part these played in social life and in cognitive processes.” Many Americans view themselves as so culturally superior that they can’t see the value that other languages and histories play. This language is one of the oldest languages in the world. It has so many stories and beautiful lessons. Literacy is not just valuing one’s own opinions, but seeing the importance of other cultures, ideas and languages. This experience opened my eyes and encouraged me to see a world that is outside of my own little bubble.