Being a teacher and a person of logic as well as of sarcasm, I believe in the use of rationality and reasoning to win arguments. Since arguments, I believe, are nothing more than intellectual battles of opinions (especially when you strip them down of all pretenses), they should be resolved with nothing more than logic and wit. At least, that’s what I thought.

Apparently, here in Brunei, arguments are a bit different. As I unfortunately learned the hard way through an argument with a parent, race surprisingly is a factor. Sadly, despite insisting my concern for his child and the goal of instilling a sense of responsibility in her, the parent forces his side with arguments like “This is not the Philippines. This is Brunei.” and “That’s nonsense. These are kids (referring to his own daughter who happened to be a year away from graduating from the primary or elementary level). You shouldn’t give them options.” And as if he made a sound enough argument with his retorts, he even abruptly leaves our conversion by walking away and shouting in front of the other parents, teachers and students, “Use your brains. Use your brains”.

Hhmmm. I guess victory goes to him for having the last words in our argument. But then again, I wonder…

A school is a very complicated institution, the workings of which are intertwined closely between its many and varied components such as its personnel, staff, faculty, parents and obviously, students. It is the harmonious relationships between these parts that make a school grow and prosper.

However, like any complicated organism, the school too is bound to experience a lot of problems, glitches, and occasional hiccups. So what can we do about it?

Unfortunately, unlike other businesses that can be solved by automated systems such as the inetsoft business intelligence software, schools don’t have a single solution to its hugely diversified challenges. In my limited years of teaching, the only ingredients that seem to work are patience, open communication, and optimism. I guess it’s just a matter of finding the right combination of the three for a particular problem.

Is the move to Brunei a permanent one? Honestly, I cannot say. Before coming here, I thought to myself, we’ll be doing this because of a dream of putting up our own school. I’m not ready to leave the country where I was born permanently. Aside from the fact that most of my relatives and friends are in the Philippines, the culture we grew up in is also the same kind of culture I want our kids to imbibe – culture of hospitality, culture of close family ties, culture of high regard for learning, and a culture of respect and courtesy.

However, the more I think about it, the more reasons I see to start building on a different dream. For one, the country I came from is now nursing and forming a culture quite different from the one we know. The effect of globalization is quite pronounced in the Philippines as well as in other countries, so the culture we’re dreaming of immersing mateo and anika in is merely a faint shadow of a global culture of the present.

Second, since Brunei is not that far away from the Philippines as the other countries are, the people we love and value are just literally 2 hours away (plane ride of course), so visiting is not a problem. If we can’t visit, then maybe they can.

Third, although not as competitive as other Asian countries, Brunei supports its people adequately. In fact, there’s no need for you to invest in a Medicare part D plan, especially if you’re a citizen. Medical benefits are provided by the government for free.

However, as far as our dream of having our own school goes, I think this is something we seriously need to consider. It’s the only thing that staying here for good does not have an answer to.

Andrea, despite being a stay-at-home mom, is actually a busy worker. Everyday she earns almost the same amount as I do by writing articles and blogging. But, that’s only because she has has plenty of time on her hand to work. Now, it’s a different story.

When anika came and I was still without work, we would split the two. I would take care of mateo. She would be in charge of the baby. However, when I went here to Brunei, she was left in charge of handling the two on her own. And there are times (plenty in fact) when they just wouldn’t cooperate.

Before, she finds time to write when mateo’s in school. Now that anika’s here, andrea would be left with no other time but during bedtime, when they are both asleep already. And getting the two to sleep is not an easy task either. Sometimes, our little one would be awake until 1 or 2 in the morning. And andrea would only start work by then.

I told her jokingly to look for sleeping pills that work on children. She answered me with a frown. Hehehe!

My first ECA class was a god experience, an enlightening one though but good nonetheless.

I got to do a lot of things while helping the kids out in the drills – run a bit, dribble, and shoot some hoops – all of which made me realize one thing – that I’m extremely out of shape already.

First of all, without even playing for real, just by getting involved in some of the drills, I found myself sweating profusely.

Second, I’m not exactly an excellent shot, but I struggled with my aim most of the time. My shooting hand is not what it used to be, or perhaps it’s my whole body.

Then, half an hour into the class, I found myself sitting down already. I don’t know if it was the heat, or if I didn’t have enough sleep, but I felt really tired. Am I at that age where I need hgh supplements just to keep up with the kids? I hope not.

Last, but not the least, as soon as I got home, I fell asleep. I couldn’t believe it myself, but that’s exactly what happened. I woke up around 2 hours later.

I’m still kinda thankful though that nothing hurt when I woke up. No back spasms, no muscle aches, no joint pains yet. At least, I know I still haven’t completely lost everything to age. Hehehe!

Extra-curricular activities (ECA) have always been an integral part of any education system. They supposedly make learning holistic. And I believe they do. That’s why I wasn’t surprised to find out that the schools here in Brunei (more specifically the school where I transferred to) have formal ECA classes.

In the Philippines, we call them clubs. Here in Brunei, they’re called ECA classes. And since teachers were required to choose a specific ECA class to handle or assist in, I chose something I’m familiar with – basketball. The only problem was, I didn’t know back then that the campus where I was assigned to doesn’t have a basketball court. In short, I had to commute to another campus to attend and help in the activities. Duh?

Was it wrong for me to assume that they had a court? I mean, isn’t it logical to offer only the activities that the school had facilities in? Apparently, not. Since the sister school shares the same management, campuses have access to the facilities of other campuses. Now, that’s new. My fault? Alright, I concede.

Anyway, since the club is something I like, I don’t mind commuting. I just hope it doesn’t hurt my budget in the long run. I’m also hoping that by the time, training and formal classes start, I’ll get to shoot some hoops myself. I know it’s about time I stopped looking to learn more about fat burners and started doing real workout.

Perhaps because of the stability of life and economy in Brunei, people here have been less hectic and possibly driven especially compared to the people in other Asian countries like Singapore or the Philippines.

I remember my mom me telling before when I was still smaller, education is the most powerful tool that you can have in alleviating poverty. And since poverty is a very pressing issue in the Philippines, students were really in to studying, almost behaving like soldiers in order to get their teachers’ attention and the edge over fellow students.

Here, that’s not the case. Children are children in this country. They’re more carefree and laid back than their counterparts elsewhere. I don’t blame them though. Children are supposed to be the picture of youth and exuberance. In that aspect, kids here are living the life any kid would love to live.

As teacher however, things are just a bit more challenging. Aside from the fact that you need to deliver the lessons as creatively as you can, you also have to have the same (if not more) exuberance than the kids have. It’s the only way that the kids will respond to you positively. I know it probably sounds tough, and it is. But, I’m slowly adjusting to the pace and starting to get the hang of it. In two weeks time, I’ll probably be passing the macanudo cigars to everyone. Hopefully, everything goes smoothly.

In the school where I work now, a staff house is provided for all expats. It’s just a fancy name for a rented house consisting of many rooms. Anyway, part of the privilege that each expat supposedly receives is a chance to let their families visit and stay in the same staff house for free, provided they stay less than 30 days. Sounds good right?

It would have been that way if not for the fact that teachers in the staff house nowadays are bunked together with roommates. No, I’m not talking about having bunk beds or cabin beds. We do have separate single beds but let’s face it. Who would want to let their family stay in if the room they’re occupying is not their own?

And since Andrea and the kids are due to arrive here in Brunei on the 9th of February, I have less than 2 weeks to find a suitable and affordable place for us to stay in. I need all the luck I can get until then.

Back in the Philippines, when I headed the science department of my previous school, I learned how to depend on drink coffee. I had to. It was the only thing that kept me awake and gave me the boost I needed to finish checking all the other science teachers’ tests, proposals, drafts, and all sorts of documents. In fact, there was even a time when I was drinking more than 5 to 8  cups a day.

However, all that changed when I resigned from work. Staying home gave me some freedom to take naps in between article writing, or house chores, so I was able to wean myself away from coffee. Little did I know that I’ll be going back to it soon.

You see, when I got to Brunei, I lost once again in the struggle against coffee. Since the country is generally hot and humid, typical of a tropical location, most of the structures here are air-conditioned – classrooms, staff rooms, labs, offices. That’s a big plus. However, at the same time, it’s also a big disadvantage. Aside from the environmental impact of leaking coolants, the cold makes it so easy to fall asleep (especially after meals). That’s why I had to resort to drinking coffee again. Of all the diuretics that work, it’s the only thing that my body responds to. Now, I drink four sachets of coffee during breaks (two in the morning and two after lunch). At night, I usually drink another two cups to last. But what else can I do, really?

It’s been more than 2 weeks since I started working in Brunei. When it comes to teaching, things have been alright so far. Since I’ve had a lot of experience handling 10 year-olds, adjusting to the manner of delivery has been less of a struggle than I expected. Pickup however is not that good.

As of now, I can’t exactly pinpoint where the difficulty lies. Difference in accent, level of language sophistication,  and teaching techniques are currently my suspects. However, I still can’t rule out the lack of basic skills on the part of some of my students. In fact, I was quite surprised to find out that some are still not adept at subtracting and/or adding numbers.

I’m torn between going full throttle and moving at the pace of the slowest ones. That’s as far as teaching is concerned.

In terms of living, things are not looking up either. Despite having lots of fellow Pinoy teachers in school and in the dormitory, I can’t help but feel lonelier as time goes by. I’m missing my family more and more everyday. In fact, the more I see the kids in school, the more I think about my son and my daughter.

I also can’t help but worry about my wife and how she’s coping up with 2 kids, house chores, and no help. Sometimes, when I chat with them online, I don’t want to stop. Never mind about the acne treatment, or the eye bags, or the hunger. Chatting with them every night is what provides me with the inspiration and the energy to get up in the morning and teach.

For two weeks, I’ve been getting pep talks and advices from people who have been here living the same life I’m living right now. Things will get better, they say. I can only nod in hope. For now, I’ll let autopilot take over.