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On The White Wall - Session #7
She's an educator from Montserrat currently living and working in Alaska. My Montserrat's
Iris sits down with a My Montserrat fan, the always interesting Miss Mary
Lindsey from St Johns.
This week...
On The White Wall
My Montserrat:
Welcome to My Montserrat Mary.
Where on the Island are you from?
ML:
Thank you, I am from St. John's in the north.
My Montserrat:
Tell us a little about yourself.
ML:
I am very adventurous and enjoy
finding a way around everyday challenges. As a member of the large Lindsey
clan, it was not easy growing up with siblings who are inclusive of Sam
Gully, John Bapsy, Matthew "Porluck" Brade, Nurse Elizabeth
Lindsey, Geraldine “Kate”
Lindsey, Elrose Lindsey, Marjorie "Glenda" Lindsey-Smith, Glendora Lindsey,
Samuel “Yaban” Lindsey, Manuel “Mouse” Lindsey and the one and only
William, “Niche”, “Dr. Lumba”, “Wallumba” Lindsey and the others too many
to mention here. Growing up Lindsey had its challenges and rewards....and
I can certainly say that there was never a dull moment at home. We’ve
always had fun laughing at ourselves, and still do -- a genetically-twisted
trait passed down from my father.
My Montserrat:
I'm sure you have some great memories of growing up in St. John's.
Is there anything you'd like to share with us?
ML:
One thing I remember vividly growing
up in St. John’s
was the sights and sounds and characters that lived all around us. The
music coming from Marse Jashy and Ms. Tanty shop especially during the
Christmas season and weekend nights. St.
John’s day, the string band music – Oh how I wanted
to follow them on the streets in the colourful costumes listening and
dancing to this sweet, hypnotic music! Although it was tough at times,
growing up in St.John’s had some very unique moments and stories that are
just too involved to tell here, suffice it to say that we certainly
enjoyed the entertaining of the likes of my neighbours, the fear of the
“bad john’s” and the fun and squabbles as we lived like only Northerners
could.
My Montserrat:
You did attend MSS, which house were you in and what was the school like
when you were there?
ML:
Yes, I did attend MSS from 1974
through 1978 and Technical
College from 1980 to
1982. MSS was fun and proud to be a member of Blue House...We rocked!
Vivid memories of MSS included learning, yes, learning...the great
teachers made sure of that and being sent to the office to be beaten as
well as being scared of Mr. Hoppy's cane! But we also had fun and played
games on each other in class, such as mixing chemicals together in
chemistry class and seeing how much trouble we could cause with the toxic
aromas (fumes). Watching the boys get “couped”, was hilarious! Some of my
classmates of note, Gilbert Brathwaite, Eric
Williams, Irose Riley, Shawn Cassell, Nevita Irish, Ronald Barzey, Richard
Graham, Odette Cabey-Daley and students from that era all made the
“innocent” trouble we got into so much more fun. Lunchtime at MSS and the
hot bread and cheese line at Mother Allen's, lunchtime matinee's at
cinema, Watts chicken, Dublin ice cream and sneaking in and out of schoolyard.
To think of it, how did we ever expect to
get away with walking through town in our MSS uniforms! The folly of
youth! It was always a hilarious time as we traveled back and forth in the
school buses with our great drivers like Mr. John Cooper and Mr. Mike
Morgan,
whose driving initially scared the daylights out of me. Attending Technical
College brings back some
bittersweet memories of my dear friend Cedric "Wrangler” Irish and
getting a second chance at a quality education – learning to write in
little curves and lines that
represented words – I hated shorthand!
My Montserrat:
Can you tell us a little bit about your line of work prior to leaving
Montserrat?
ML:
I worked as an office assistant
(don't remember what the politically-correct terminology for my title was)
in the Development Unit at Government Headquarters from 1982 through 1984
when I transferred to Clerk of Council's office through 1986 when I left
for the United States.
My Montserrat:
Who were some of the people who motivated and inspired you as you were
growing up on Montserrat?
ML:
My biggest motivators were my educators. The instructors who
taught me
to think and imparted some very valuable life lessons to me as well. Of note
are: Teacher Kitty, Mrs. Joyce Thomas, Teacher Sarah, Mrs. Vera Weeks, Mr.
CT John, Mr. Peter White, Ms Rachel Collis and Mr. O’Flahearty. Teacher
Kitty in particular challenged me daily with her no nonsense attitude. It
was always a battle between her and I, but as I matured, I have come to
realize that she was teaching me to reach outside the comfortable to
recognize and embrace my true potential. She would never give me a perfect
grade, because as she said, "no one is perfect only God" and so
she would find a comma or sloppy writing just so that she could give me a
grade less than 100%. By doing this, she made me always want to strive for
the highest possible grade, knowing that she would drop my grade down a
point or two. There were times when I rewrote a paper three or four times
just to ensure my writing was the best that it could possibly be. Charles
Thomas John, Qui Non Proficit Deficit – a phrase I have used and continue
to use as it reminds me that if I do not progress, I can in fact lose
ground.
My Montserrat:
You are currently living in Bush Alaska.
How long have you been living there and what do you do there?
ML:
In September 2009 I started working
for the Lower Yukon
School District (LYSD) located in
the westernmost part of Alaska (the Alaskan
side of the Bering Sea). As an Education
Technology Coordinator, my job is to facilitate professional development
courses for teachers, staff and school board members on best practices of
incorporating technology in the classroom to aid in student retention and
recall. Additionally, and in an effort to gauge the interest level of
students, I travel on a daily basis by 6-seater airplane to the 11 village
rural (or Bush) schools that LYSD services and "demonstrate
teach" new technological tools and resources in the classrooms. In so
doing I am better able to reach the students where they are with the
hi-tech tools that are somewhat an extension of them in this digital age
of iPods, iPads, iPhones, iSynch, Podcasts, Blogs, Wikis, Nings…and so I
keep the learners engaged in their own learning by making classroom time
fun and relevant to each learner.
My Montserrat:
How is a girl from the Islands coping with life in Alaska?
ML:
Alaska is just the colder version (-40 degrees
sometimes) of the village
of St. John's to me.
Looks a bit different with the grizzly and black bear that roam free all around
the edges of the village, the foxes, wolves, mink, beavers and other
animals we only read about in the storybooks. The community is very
family-oriented and everyone knows everyone else. The Yup’iks community is
such a tightly knit one that a death can practically close down a village
for weeks on end. Families and extended families travel between villages
by boat, snow machines and/or plane to mourn with other family members.
Village life is exciting and living among the native Eskimos is not as
challenging as I had imagined prior to coming up here. The real challenges
come from being unable to make authentic sugar cake, grating the coconut,
etc., getting fresh vegetables (I am a vegetarian in a moose-eating
community) and other familiar down-home comforts. But I've got technology
and the tools are endless. I blog, I skype and I am an avid Facebooker and
enjoy living vicariously through the images posted by FB friends and
family. It is indeed a humbling experience for me and I am enjoying the challenging
adventure that has become my life. Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights! The
moon seemingly closer to earth, an awesome rainbow around the sun even on
the coldest of days, I still live in *the lower
48s*,and travel back to my home in Florida often, but I am thoroughly enjoying
the peace and tranquility of Mountain Village, Alaska after living in New York/Florida
for over 20 years. As activities in the villages go, there are no movie
theaters, shopping malls, or such things. The mode of transportation in
the winter is not dogsleds, but Polaris snow machines and in the
spring/summer, ATVs (also called Hondas, regardless of manufacturer) and
4x4 trucks for hauling wood and traveling over somewhat treacherous roads.
In May, I travelled for 2 hours by snow machine over large frozen lakes to
catch my first “pike fish” by using a manaq (ice fishing pole) at the base
of the Kozivaq
Mountains. And just this
past week, I went drifting to experience subsistence King Salmon fishing.
Picking berries and attending native dances and fiddling are also part of
the natural order of things as are hearing these words as you meet elders
in the villages.
Waqaa (Hello)
Quyana (Thank you)
Chanachit (How are you)
Kurtuzit (What is your name)
Uputeksaunaki (Do not criticize, one of my favorite)
Buluguks (boots)
My Montserrat:
What's the best part of your job?
ML:
It would be very easy to say that the
feedback received from learners when they "get it" makes the
difference, but I would have to say that actually seeing positive
behavioral adjustment and learner engagement is the most rewarding.
My Montserrat:
Is there any one you'd like to give a shout to while you're here?
ML:
Shout out to my daughter Lisa without
whom I may never have fully grasped the meaning of true and unconditional
love. She has been instrumental in helping me see myself from a different
perspective and she is the proverbial "wind beneath my
wings"...Love you loads! To my 88-year old mother whose strong belief
in Proverbs 22:6 has helped me remember the long road home; and to my many
sisters, brothers, nieces, nephews (all of my family and friends), without
you my life would be lopsided. To my former educators (professional and
laypeople), thanks for helping to shape me by pouring into my brain, even
when I did not want to listen to your guidance. And most definitely,
praise and thanks to God for mercies untold! Thank you to My Montserrat
and The White Wall for allowing me to share what truly has been a guided
tour of how the uniqueness of "My Montserrat"
influenced my life.
My Montserrat:
Thanks for visiting with us. We wish you the best of the luck with your job
and do come back soon.
ML:
Bless! 
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© 2010 My Montserat & Strats Finest
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