Back on the road, part 3, c

ON THE ROAD PART 3

Amongst friends there are few that I would count as close, and amongst those few a handful that I would consider the equivalent to my soul friend. You know, that certain someone whose trust and acceptance is proven by time, and whose friendship provides a solid foundation where all matters can be discussed, wheater minor or major and whose opinion you hold in high regards for you know their interest lies not in what can be gained, but what can be given. Amongst those special few, there is one who holds a unique place, and that person is my cousin Alexis. To describe Alexis in one word would be SELFLESS. From a young age, born into a family where education holds a prime spot in the upbringing and development of a child, Alexis, learnt two keys to academic success from an early age, Persistence and Determination. He’s six years my junior and I still remember vividly being in Italy looking at a picture of my new born baby cousin sent by my Australian aunt. A young pale child sprawled out on a flamelette colourful blanket, with big blue eyes and a huge smile layed out from cheek to cheek. Lex, (In Australia we seem physically impaired to speak the whole name so abbreviations are a must) is my best friend. But more than that, he is also blood. I first met him when my family and I emigrated from Italy and upon my first visit to his house I was intrigued by my stick welding, tree climbing Australian cousin. We visited his house in the Kalamunda hills, a place about an hour’s drive from Perth. I remember this young, light blue eyed fuzzy haired guy descending from a tree at our arrival, and though my English vocabulary ranged from the word “Hello” pronounced as Halo.. to the word “Orange” which no doubt sounded like Orang-utan, he was quick to introduce me to his favourite animated cartoon, “Footrot flats”. He must have been in turn intrigued by his Italian, elegantly dressed cousin. I say “elegant”, because It did not take me long to discover that the fashion varies greatly from Rome to Perth. The beige dress pants and neatly ironed shirt I sported upon my arrival stood out like a sore thumb from the baggy blue jeans and crumpled up, faded t-shirt worn by my Australian peers. And it took me even less to realize that If I did not quickly change my accessories, my facial figures would have been permanently changed by the older, tough looking “Bogons”, a breed apart who roamed the Australian streets sporting ultra tight black jeans, black t-shirts proudly displaying the word AC/DC or Metallica, accompanied by detailed graphics of skulls with snakes protruding from their eyes, or a person being struck by lightning while sitting on the toilet. I remember how weird I found their flat top haircuts, short and spiky on top, which rebelliously launched to a woman’s length at the back of their skulls. Known as “The Mullet”, it is a very terrifying hair cut indeed, for more than one reason, but that’s another topic.
So there we were, west meets west, though completely and utterly different. His knees still scruffed and grazed from the various falls he would have taken on the red, muddy coloured dust of the Australian soil he walked, played and rode his bike on, faced with a prim and proper, (in appearance at least), green eyed boy who’s hair was so tightly and firmly slicked back that a tornado in its full wrath could not have altered.
Ever since that day, though there have been times in our life where for obvious reasons (such as life’s occurrences) we spent times apart, he has been to me an ever constant source of entertainment and someone I could confide in and vice versa. He is also the reason why I am now in Yemen. In reference to my prior introduction of Alexis as “selfless”, the reasons are many, but one in particular stands out amongst the rest. Having studied hard throughout his academic years, Alexis graduated from University as a fully fledged lawyer. After graduating he spent time, as an upcoming lawyer must do, fine tuning his skills and knowledge in a small law firm in Fremantle, Perth. It was throughout this time, likely due to the weight of dealing with the stress related field of family law (such happy events as assets distribution and child custody as an aftermath of the nowadays trend of divorce), that Alexis found himself travelling to Cambodia and Vietnam to breathe a breath of fresh air. The story is long, but throughout his time in Cambodia in particular, to my understanding, he found himself involved in volunteer work as a waiter in a Orphanage/Restaurant. His life, his soul, his mentality and view of life’s values and priorities were forever changed. He came back a completely different person. Ever since then he found no joy in the thought of striking it rich as a lawyer, knowing he would never find true fulfilment in a luxurious mansion or a shiny BMW. His whole life’s direction shifted, and through a series of events he found himself applying for a position as a United Nations eligibility officer in Yemen of all places. There are many things he has done to benefit the lives of those less fortunate that will never be known to others but those directly affected by it. No shouting from rooftops, no seeking of rewards. The guy is a legend, and my affection and admiration for him runs deeper than perhaps I myself know. So, to make a long story short, he made it possible for me to come and spend some time doing volunteer work here in Yemen, and it was also Alexis, that about 9 days ago, having seen me in a down mood, sat me down and got the low down on what got me feeling and looking so unlike my usual self. I’m a tough nut to crack, and strictly and solely open up to those I consider extremely close, so all it took from Lex’s behalf was a…”John, what’s up bro?” with that certain look he gives me, and the beans were spilt. I was able to get the thoughts rummaging around my head out in the open, and once released, its amazing how much clearer your vision and judgment becomes on issues you were so hard pressed by beforehand. Life is different in Yemen; ever single fibre of society’s life is completely and utterly different from the ways of the western world. From how people related to one another, to family life and values, from commerce to how business is conducted and so on, and as Alexis filled me in on his experiences and realizations acquired so far in Yemen, it became clearer and clearer that all I was experiencing was solely and issue of cultural differences. You see, over here, even though people are lovely and embracing of any help offered, organizational schedules run on a near invisible wave length. The best way for me to phrase the feeling is “If you want something done, you have to do it yourself, and at times you need to do so in what seem to be the hardest of conditions, and that is purely because of the lack of organization and cultural differences evidenced in this country”. But that in itself is something that pushes and inspires you to grow as an individual, because in the end, either you react, or you go down in burning flames.
And I am glad I went through the cultural adjustment, because it has re established my focus and determination so see something positive happen, and the change in my attitude saw a change in my circumstances. I have since struck a friendship with the right hand Amar, and funnily enough, through conversation have realized that he too fights the same difficulties I’ve been facing in my walk to be active. Sometimes I hear him complain of how his boss never replies to his texts or e-mails and that he is frequently left in the lurch with lack of direction….ha ha.. Anyways, it has now been a week that I have been teaching Photoshop and Illustrator at the “Succeed” centre to a group of 19 fresh faced Somali students. I cannot express how much I love doing so. Not only due the interaction and satisfaction of seeing a young person who knew nothing of design programs come to an understanding of basic functions and eager to learn more, but also because now I have a willing audience to subject to my lame cheesy jokes and they HAVE to laugh because I am their teacher!!!..lol.. So I teach daily for three hours from 11 am till 2 pm, then I go to the IDF clinic and comm. Service centre to update information on brochures and informational posters I work on in the afternoons while sipping macchiato’s at a near by café’ with wireless connection and will soon begin to paint a mural and teach art to young kindergarden children…..How good can life get?. In two days it is the end of Ramadam, so operational hours will go back to normal, I hope, but Ramadam is followed by a ten day holiday known as Haid?..when everything and everywhere is closed for business, and it is during this time that I will be away to Aden, down south, to attend the wedding of my dear friend Mohammed, to his beloved soon to be wife. My cousin, my Somali friends and Andy, one of the funniest English guys I met, will be chilling for four days at a hostel 50 meters away from the beach, and as Aden is extremely hot, and Ramadam will be finished, meaning I will be parading and soaking up as much sun as I can without a t-shirt on..lol…haram haram!!!. Then it’s back to Sana’a, where I will re commence teaching classes, Idf work and the kindy. I cannot wait… and if you are reading this, thank you for bearing with me through the endless amount of words and my moping through the previous chapter. This is Jonathan, reporting from Yemen, Over and out
UPDATE TO COME WHEN I RETURN FROM ADEN…….