Teacher's Day

by Martina Minto (Italy)

Making a local connection Cameroon

Thursday October 5th in Cameroon is Teacher’s Day. As we entered the week, I saw the excitement building on my colleagues’ faces as the day approached. The headmaster had given me a themed piece of cloth, and I went to the tailor to get my first-ever tailored dress done. The cloth was a typical African one, colored in yellows and greens – colors that fit dark skinned people better than white ones. But I was determined of having a nice day with my new dress, and when Thursday morning finally came, I put it in my bag and headed to school. It wasn’t a working day: with the bus, we picked up the secondary school students and headed to a football field, where we supported the team made up by local male teachers. During the match I enjoyed staying with the young girls, as they breaded my hair and we chatted. It was interesting asking them questions, and I learned that they all had great ambitions in life. These girls are twelve, thirteen, and they told me they wished to become police officers, engineers, and most of all, doctors. It made me quite think, as in Italy, but in Europe and in the Western world more generally, at that age we want to become dancers, superheroes, or we have no idea. But here, the children are more practical. They have skills we don’t possess at their age. I see it everyday when five-years-old children completely take care of their younger siblings, whenever they are sick or need any sort of help. These children are independent, probably due to the fact that they are alone most of the time. Those that do not take the bus home, walk a long way, and are not older than 8 years old. Whenever I look down the streets I see young children, even toddlers sometimes, completely by themselves exploring the world around them. They gain independence and a look on their world that people in the Western world sometimes only reach at the age of 18 or over. After our school lost the match, we headed back to the school and drove the kids back home for their day was over. Ours as teachers, though, had just begun. The teachers were at a bar drinking and having lunch when I joined them, and after we headed once again back to the school. Some teachers went home to get changed, others remained there. I had the chance to chat with people who I saw on a daily basis but never had a chance to exchange a few words with. It was a nice experience, but left me with a bittersweet taste after all. When everyone had arrived – wearing our Teacher’s Day dresses – we sat down at the canteen. The headmaster and the principal stood up and gave long speeches about what this day meant to them, sounding a bit too much like priests in church if you ask me, but inspired loud applauses nevertheless. Then dinner was served: typical African food cooked by the female teachers who had gathered in the morning for the special occasion. As African dishes mostly involve meat and fish, I passed on dinner. I was personally feeling very tired after a long day, and after dinner I headed home with another young teacher, while the rest of them continued the party over at a nearby bar. I though it was a nice opportunity for me to witness this Cameroonian tradition, as walking down the street I noticed many teachers from different schools had gathered for the same occasion. Getting bits of Cameroonian life is one of the main reasons that lead me here; as I begin my second month, the pinch of Cameroon that I am taking is making itself fuller every time.