PARK TUDOR PARK TUDOR - YourMembership.com

More documents

Recommendations

Info

FeatureFor Freedom’s SakeB y T y r a S e l d o n , P h . D . , U p p e r S c h o o l E n g l i s hEditor’s Note: In July of this year, 21 Park Tudor Upper School students traveled to Cape Town,South Africa to work with children at Christel House South Africa through a trip sponsored byIndianapolis-based Ambassadors for Children. Christel House, established by Indianapolis philanthropistChristel DeHaan, has five learning centers around the globe, serving nearly 2,600 children.Before leaving for Cape Town, Park Tudor students participated in various hands-on activities andinteractive leadership modules at the Eagle Creek Peace Learning Center, a community educationalinstitution teaching peace building and conflict resolution skills to youth and adults. Trip chaperoneDr. Tyra Seldon highlights the trip’s unanticipated impacts.Love takes off masks that we fear we cannot live withoutand know we cannot live within.— James BaldwinThis article is dedicated to all of the beautiful children whoattend Christel House South Africa.Months before leaving for our humanitarian trip to SouthAfrica, I read Paul Rogat Loeb’s book “Soul of a Citizen:Living with Conviction in a Cynical Time.” Movedby his eloquent retelling of numerous stories from the Civil RightsMovement about bravery, trust, love and cooperation, I often pausedto wonder if indeed we live in an age in which our cynicism anddistrust for each other have become so normalized that we often failto see and embrace the simplest aspects of each others’ humanity.How often do we avert the eye contact of strangers, offeran obligatory “how are you?” or halfheartedly part our lips tosay “hello” while walking briskly to our next meeting, class orappointment? As much as I would like to exclude myself fromthese minor offenses, I too am guilty as charged. And yet, asI spent time with 21 Park Tudor students and the learners ofChristel House South Africa, I became aware that it is oftenthe small, yet authentic, expressions and gestures that are mostmeaningful and transformative.Using the Peace Learning Modules, Park Tudor studentswere headed to Cape Town to teach South African childrenhow to be bridge builders and agents of change in their owncommunal units (family, school, community and society).Theiroverall objective was to illustrate that creating and maintainingpeace is plausible, yet by the time the trip concluded, welearned more from the children of Christel House than we evercould have imagined.v v v v v v v vI sat on the orange steps in the courtyard at Christel Houseand closed my eyes. Not even the bustling sounds of the highschool learners and Park Tudor students playing soccer, shootinghoops and skipping rope would interfere with this slightreprieve from the larger group. This was my moment of respite;finally, my time just to be still. It was only our second full dayin Cape Town, but I was already drained. Only the day before,we had toured the Slovo Settlement near Langa and Kewtownin Athlone where many of the Christel House learners and their12 park tudor phoenix FALL 2007
FEATUREfamilies lived. While riding through the settlement, Park Tudorstudents were viscerally moved by living conditions that didnot include indoor or below-ground plumbing. Women washedtheir clothing at a communal well and public toilets lined theunpaved, muddy streets. Young toddlers, nestled at their mothers’knees, waved lovingly as we drove by their homes. Attimes, we would see school-age, unsupervised children walkingthe streets.We toured a two-room shanty of one of the ChristelHouse parents, where five adults and three children livedwithin two feet ofother dwellings similarin size and scope.The mother swept herdirt floor while graciouslyletting us intoher home. Posted onher refrigerator door ina room that doubledas the kitchen and livingroom was a posterwith the four principlesof Christel Houseprominently displayed:respect, responsibility,independence andintegrity. Park Tudorstudents observed tacitlyas they tried tocomprehend the abjectpoverty that they wereencountering firsthand. Was there enough of a common language amongst us toreally articulate what we were seeing? Feelings oscillated fromanger, disillusionment and guilt to compassion, empathy andhope. How did this woman muster the strength to still believein herself and in humanity? Where did her formidable spiritcome from?Well versed on the topic of apartheid, I’d seen movies anddocumentaries and taught novels and memoirs that attemptedto paint an accurate picture of the living conditions of the Blacksettlements. Yet, as much as I could intellectualize what I’dseen, my heart was less understanding: more than 5,000 peopleliving in 1,200 shacks, many of whom were young children.“Do you remember my name?” The question, simplystated, startled me. Unsettled by my memories from the daybefore, I looked up with caution and saw a warm and welcomingsmile. Standing before me with a perfectly symmetricalface was a young man beaming with confidence and pride. Hissmooth skin looked as if it had been chiseled out of impeccablemahogany and his eyes radiated with anticipation.“Of course I do – your name is Freedom.” Freedom satdown beside me. We looked at each other and I wondered whyhe wasn’t taking full advantage of his recess period. After a fewmoments of guarded silence, he asked me where he could findSterling. I pointed across the yard to a group of red shirts andblue uniforms encircling a bench several feet away from us.“He’s inside the circle…I think they are doing card tricks.”Freedom didn’t move towards the group. He did benddown and turn his head sideways to catch a glimpse of Sterling’sfeet. “I see him.”I offered to go and get Sterling, but Freedom declinedpolitely. We sat on the steps and sensing my discomfort, Freedominitiated a conversation.Amazed by hismaturity and poise, Ilistened as he talked tome about his favoritemovies, the new HarryPotter book, his family,sports, the Bibleand the model TyraBanks. I discoveredthat he lived in oneof the nearby townshipsand that he, likemost of the childrenwe met, was not onlyfascinated by Americanpopular culture,but well versed in it aswell. In the midst ofour conversation, he’dReggie Nesbit ’10 takes a break with some of his new friends from Christel House.often glance intenselyat the group in front ofus just waiting for a chance to excuse himself so that he couldgo talk to Sterling.After we’d exhausted everything that a sixth grader and a34 year old could possibly have in common, my curiosity gotthe best of me. “Why do you want to see Sterling?” Freedomtold me that earlier in the day, during one of their small-groupactivities, Sterling placed his blue and gold hat on Freedom’shead. He let Freedom wear it during the duration of the groupactivity. “I want to thank him.”I offered to relay the message, but Freedom declinedfirmly. “No, I want to tell my hero myself.” Instinctively, I said“What?” but Freedom answered why: “Sterling came all theway from America to be with us so he must love us.”Surely there was more to this story, there must be an andin there somewhere; I waited for the climax, the big momentof truth that would reveal some larger connection that Freedomhad made with Sterling, but there was none. Masking my owndisappointment, I kept thinking a hat. The bell rang, signalingthe end of recess, and Freedom thanked me for our conversation,waved goodbye and half walked/ran to get in line.Continued on page 14FALL 2007 park tudor phoenix 13
Page 1: PARK TUDORPhoenixFALL 2007WHAT’S
Page 4 and 5: News of the SchoolFROM THE HEAD’S
Page 6 and 7: News of the schoolDean Hawver Chemi
Page 9 and 10: news of the schoolInvolved in our c
Page 11: news of the schoolAthletes in the n
Page 15 and 16: featureStudent opportunities for fo
Page 17 and 18: featurean annual three-act play in

PARK TUDOR PARK TUDOR - YourMembership.com

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?