Is it possible to escape the irony?

Throughout my PhD, I studied the dynamics of power, how it operates, who operates it, and how it affects people, relationships, and societies. Heading into fieldwork, any good researcher must grapple with how they will behave and present themselves. As a researcher immersed in the community I was to study, I had to have real clarity of my own morals and ethics, as a human being and a researcher to help guide me through the inevitable challenges and ambiguities I would encounter.

These young women are loud, with confident smiles and full, deep laughs, and waiting to raise the flags. There are no school administrators or teachers in sight, no attendance taking or adults supervising the students; the students lead themselves.

There were two phrases overused and drilled into my head that summer of 2004 when I became a New York City Teaching Fellow. “Crux of it all” and “teachable moments.”

I’m writing to you from the absolutely gorgeous, inspiring, and friendly country of Jordan. There’s a saying I subscribe to which is, “if I haven’t been there, it’s on the list.” Surely that is true for Jordan.