About Learning

Today I discovered something about learning. Learning can be really hard when its context lies in hypothetical scenarios and I can’t always appreciate its value. Right now I’m studying Arabic and I think it’s difficult. So does my friend Tina, who I’m studying with. Neither of us are particularly great at it. Fortunately, there’s camaraderie in our ineptitude and we laugh and tease each other, help each other out and count down the weeks together.

When we started the course, our teacher Aida asked us why we wanted to learn Arabic. The class gave a host of familiar reasons; mine’s because I think it’s disrespectful to live in a foreign country and not know the language. I’ve been in this country two years and this is my second attempt at learning Arabic.  Sometimes I think I’ll make it through to the end of the course, sometimes I don’t think I’ll make it past Beginner’s 1.

That was, until today. I was driving down the street when I saw an Emirati lady at a bus stop, with a chilly, cloudy wind blowing her headscarf off repeatedly. She looked really out of place and cold. She was also in a wheelchair, which was off the kerb and actually on the road, in the bus inlet. I was quite confounded by her presence there. You would not expect to see a lady like her. The traffic was moving but I caught her eye and knew I couldn’t just drive away, so I turned the car around and went back to see if I could take her somewhere.

I said “Masaar il khair” and she said “Habibti” and she had such lovely eyes and seemed so sweet. She spoke no English! And I’m on the 4th Arabic class – I only learned how to say “Afwan” yesterday. And I forgot that anyway. Fortunately, there was a man from Abu Dhabi there, who could speak English and was already assisting her. It turns out the lady was from Al Ain, she had lost her passport in this area in Dubai and had been visiting the police. She needed to get to Bur Dubai in order to get a bus back to Al Ain (another emirate). So I’m trying to bring these destinations up on a map, to take her to either destination and asking this chap to ask her if she can point the directions, whilst in the car. This lady and I are wanting to communicate and neither of us can talk to each other! Then the bus came and the man from Abu Dhabi decided it would be easier to put her on the bus, which he was getting on anyway and whisked her off.

That made me sad and frustrated because I would have liked to take this lady with the kind eyes somewhere in a car, rather than change buses, but I just can’t speak the language. I also had the time to take her to Al Ain. It was a surreal kind of situation because it was strange – I don’t know what she was doing there by herself on a day like this in the first place and I just wanted to make sure she was OK. And that’s all I could say: kullshay tamaam?

But I did learn something – that when you learn in real life it often stings but the lesson’s not forgotten. And today I learned why, realistically, I have to learn Arabic.