The International
Educator
February
2003
DoDDS
Happenings
On
a DoDDS (Department of Defense Dependent School) school grounds
at a US Air Force base in Turkey, students take a break from their
work to turn cartwheels as low-flying jets roar above.
Of
jets and cartwheels
by
Karen Strawn
There's a scene in the movie Pearl
Harbor where American children are playing in a field while Japanese
planes fly low overhead on their way to Pearl Harbor. It is a surreal
scene that predicts without preparing for the historical tragedy
that results.
I teach second grade on a US military
base in Turkey. Everyday between 9:30-10am I take my students outside
for break because I know this is when the US Air Force pilots do
their work. Seeing the jets flying low overhead and hearing the
deafening sound of the engines, I take pause from teaching in the
classroom.
As I watch my students turn cartwheels
and play "red rover" against the backdrop of one of America's
closest Air Force bases to Iraq, I can't help but feel the eternal
conflict between good and evil move right through me. The children
are innocent and trusting against an enemy unknown, untouchable
and inevitable. And I wonder, "Will they be okay?" My
job is to focus on teaching and learning and to maintain a sense
of normalcy for military families in a setting where mom wears chemical
warfare gear to work and dad gets his eyebrows plucked for enhanced
gas mask grounding.
The school provides stability for
children in the midst of an unstable and threatening political environment
where war is likely and change is unavoidable. I feel like I'm in
the eye of a tornado - the calm before a storm. I'm not paralyzed
with fear but becoming strong in courage. And I will need this courage
to stand strong before my students and answer big questions from
tiny voices, "Miss Strawn, will I see you again?" My morning
break with jets and cartwheels is a surreal scene predicting without
preparing for the historical tragedy that will result.
|