Look2U

Two weeks ago, on a fine Saturday afternoon, I was on my way to church and was waiting for the MRT to arrive so that I could travel from Potong Pasir to Expo. There was this macik (a term we use to refer to a Malay auntie) who looked stranded at the platform and not long after she walked towards me.

At that point in time, I was thinking that she might be lost and needed directions to get to where she wanted and I was all prepared to do so. I mean what else could a person want at the platform? But anyway, she stood right in front of me and asked me, “YOU! Are you a Malay?”

I was shocked because I never thought she would ask this (bizarre) question. It took me about five seconds to process this seemingly simple yes/no question before I could bring myself to say a shaky “no”. The funniest thing was that she seemed elated that I wasn’t a Malay and spoke enthusiastically in English Language. And I admit that she was very proficient in English Language.

Yes, she wanted directions to Yishun and it was her maiden experience taking the MRT. She thanked me for the assistance that I provided. But what left me awestruck was the fact that the first question was in no way related to what she wanted to get from me – directions! For the strangest reason, I looked at my skin colour and I pondered for the longest time ever, even during the train ride, whether I looked like a Malay. Yes, for those who have taken AMX301, I know you all will scorn at me and say, “How can you do that? Did AMX301 teach you that? Dr. Patricia Wong will be so disappointed in you!”

But think again, if the question was posed to you by that macik, would you have reacted in the same way? And don’t worry, I did share this story with Dr. Patricia Wong and some of my friends and other lecturers. I’m just curious…so what if I was a Malay? Would the macik have reacted differently? Would she even bother to ask me for directions? So many questions…

But still, at the end of the day, BIZARRE!

Have you ever dreamt about stuff that don’t really make sense? Ever tried making some sense out of it?

Well, I dreamt that I was driving along an expressway and I saw a man running on the road, against the traffic. The weirdest thing was he was running sideways and I actually knew who that man was. Moreover, this is the second time that this dream occurred.

This dream can be read in many different ways but still…Weird!

I have been meditating on these verses from John 13:26-30,

²⁶ Jesus answered, “It is he to whom I shall give a piece of bread when I have dipped it.” And having dipped the bread, He gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. ²⁷ Now after the piece of bread, Satan entered him. Then Jesus said to him, “What you do, do quickly.” ²⁸ But no one at the table knew for what reason He said this to him. ²⁹ For some thought, because Judas had the money box, that Jesus had said to him, “Buy those things we need for the feast,” or that he should give something to the poor.
³⁰ Having received the piece of bread, he then went out immediately. And it was night.

I have been wondering how Jesus felt when He passed the bread to Judas Iscariot and similarly, how Judas Iscariot felt when he received the bread from Jesus. Judas’s reaction was pretty clear for me in verse 30. He did what his heart told him to do and yes, he did it quickly as suggested from the word “immediately”.

Jesus’s reaction, however, wasn’t very clear for me. The only clue I got was in verse 27 when he said, “What you do, do quickly.”

What was Jesus trying to bring out? I mean the sentence would project a pretty neutral feeling if you just glance through it. Of course, God wouldn’t impress me with these few verses for no good reason. I prayed and asked God what was He trying to tell me and I felt that what Jesus wanted to do at that point in time was to get Judas Iscariot to make a clear stand – was he going to follow Jesus or betray him.

I guess God likes people to be hot or dead cold. He hates people in the lukewarm category. For Judas Iscariot, he belonged to the lukewarm category and Jesus wanted him to just make a decision. I mean you can’t follow God and mammon at the same time. I think that’s what God was trying to bring out. And we all know that, sadly, Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus in the end.

Whatever the case, a tree without roots cannot survive for long. Are you a fickle-minded person or a rooted person?

God has once again done the unexpected and perhaps I should start looking forward to unexpected things happening in the near future.

Things are starting to bother me recently and I am seriously not satisfied with where I am right now. I am in need of a breakthrough…

A couple of days ago, my friend Ian and I talked about the possibilities of me going over to Vietnam to teach as soon as I have fulfilled my bond period with MOE. He passed me a URL listing some of the teaching vacancies in some of the international schools in Vietnam and I glanced through almost all of them.

What I am about to discuss about is not on my future career path but an issue with perceptions on “native speakers of English Language”. Before I proceed on any further, here’s an extract of one of the listings for an English Language teacher:

We recruit only qualified/certified teachers from the following countries:

- United Kingdom
- USA
- Canada
- Ireland
- Australia
- New Zealand
- South Africa

Teachers must be fully trained to teach in state schools in one of these countries and possess full qualification/certification with teacher training such as a Bachelors or Masters of Education, PGCE, Higher Diploma in Education, etc. South African teachers with only a diploma of education will have very limited opportunities as most Ministries of Education require a Bachelors degree in Education, and do not like the word Diploma.

Please note that these are not jobs teaching English as a foreign language and therefore a TEFL certificate and/or non-educational Bachelors degree alone is not enough.

Due to the volume of applications, only successful candidates will be contacted. If you do not meet the above qualifications you will not be considered.

I was taken aback when I saw that only “Westerners” are qualified to teach English Language. So I told Ian and he said that it was because they were native speakers of English Language. Okay wait! Here’s the problem. English Language is my first language because my government has made it that way. Arguably, it is one of my native languages along with Mandarin and Cantonese. And besides, Singapore has got one of the best teacher training institutions and I am proud that I am studying there and obtaining my teaching qualifications from there as well.

I guess the problem lies with my outer appearance. I am, after all, an Asian by appearance and nationality. [Ignorant] people perceive Asians as people who have bad command and speak incomprehensible English and tend to communicate with a foreign language. It is true to a certain extent but there are exceptions. Singapore is one and Singaporeans do, in general, speak relatively good English as compared to her neighbours. Unfortunately, we still fall with the SEA region and we tend to fall within their generalisation. But as soon as I start speaking, I tend to get comments like, “Wow, you speak good English!”

As my lecturer Ms. Charlene Rajendran explained in one of our classes, it can be read as, “You are not supposed to have such good command of English Language!”. Hence, I’m being viewed as an anomaly like I’m some weird specimen. And that has happened before when I was in Australia! Closer to home, I was in Hong Kong and when I told one of the salesman that I was a Singaporean, he immediately asked with great enthusiasm, “Do Singaporeans speak many languages?”. I still remember what my reply was. I simply told him that most Singaporeans speak two languages – English Language and their mother tongue. Of course, more than two would be an asset especially when it comes to business and travelling.

Whichever the case, Singaporeans tend to be viewed as anomalies in most countries as we do not fall within the stereotypes of being Asian and Western. Not Western but not quite Asian. We fall within the periphery or lie within the limen, an elusive limbo. Strangely, I enjoy this feeling as I tend to surprise people. The Westerners tend to be astonished over my good or even better command of English Language and the mainland Chinese envy that I can speak relatively good Mandarin and grapple with English Language. As for the Hong Kongers, they provide better service as soon as I communicate with them in Cantonese.

Is the issue of the native tongue ever important in my case? I don’t think so but I guess my nationality would be a big minus to people who don’t understand our region well enough…But, I have faith in God that He will provide and open doors. That is all that matters…