Jared, Kenya

 

Jared was born in Western Kenya but spent most of his adolescence in Nairobi, where he went to primary, secondary school and later earned his BEd with emphasis in math. When still in Kenya he met Mary and they got engaged. In 2000, Jared went to live in Andover, MA to be a visiting professor of math for a summer program at the Philips Academy. After the program ended, he started to work towards a Masters in applied mathematics at the University of Washington. While in graduate school, he and Mary got married and eventually had two daughters. Upon earning his MSc in Applied Math Jared got an adjunct teaching job at Highline College in Des Moines, WA, where he stayed for two years before getting a tenure track position at Tacoma Community College.

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Occupation: Math Professor at Tacoma Community College

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Family in the US (from Kenya): No one besides his wife (who has family in Virginia). While the majority of Jared’s family is in Kenya, he also has three brothers residing in Canada, South Africa, and Qatar respectively.

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Languages: English (Kenya’s official business language), Swahili (Kenya’s national language): these languages are routinely taught in school. He also speaks Luhya (his father’s language), and Luo (his mother’s language), the latter languages are spoken in his parents' villages and he uses them to write to family there. It’s common for people in Kenya to know at least 3 languages, the first two, official languages of the country, and at least one from the parents’ mother tongue.  

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Favorite pastimes: listening to music and photography (with a preference for landscapes and portraits on location)

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Favorite music: Afro beat and Jazz. For instance artists like Hugh Masekela, Manu Dibango, Franco & T.P.O.K Jazz, and Tabu Ley

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Language challenges: some issues in pronunciation of words which sound different in Kenya (an example is “apple” which in his mouth sounds more like “epple”) and British English words (Kenya was a British colony) that Americans are unfamiliar with, like “full stop” (period) and “Z” (zed vs. zee)

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Could do without: there a few episodes that stood out, but Jared’s thinking (which is clear in his reaction as described later) is that to focus on the wrongs one had to endure, ends up hurting oneself more than anyone else, so it’s unhealthy and counterproductive to dwell on them. Still, here are two occurrences. In his first job as adjunct math teacher at Highline College he used to dress casually to teach (like most professors, with jeans and a t-shirt). One day, as he was about to enter his class, he was stopped by a janitor, who asked him who he was. He answered that he was the teacher and, even though the students and a colleague from a classroom nearby confirmed it, it took 30 minutes or more for the janitor to allow Jared to enter his own classroom. While his dean and coworkers were appalled and told him to report the incident, Jared decided to let it drop to avoid potentially great consequences for the older janitor, from which he later received a letter of apology. Something else that occasionally happens to him is when playing recreational golf. It’s preferred that four people play through the golf course together, so when someone is alone, the staff asks him/her to join a smaller group. More than once, a group of three white men was asked to include him in their round and “Jared” was ok with them until, upon seeing him they declined. Jared plays golf for the love of the game not to socialize, so he just shrugs these kind of reactions off, still being fully aware that these rejections are potentially based on his race, and sometimes presumed incompetence. 

  

Favorite expressions:

                                 In “sheng” (a mix of English and Swahili): “sasa” (what’s up?) and vipi (what’s going on?)

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Objects:

• Tie: a gift from his brother-in-law, with Kenya’s flag, with black, red, green, white, and Maasai shield in front of two crossed white spears.

• Franco & T.P.O.K Jazz, and Tabu Ley records: a couple of his favorites, symbolizes his love for music and his ties to his country of birth.

 

Jared, Kenya 

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Yaredi Abwawo alizaliwa Magharibi Kenya lakini alitumia ujana wake mwingi huko Nairobi, ambapo alienda shule ya msingi, sekondari na baadaye akapata BEd yake kwa msisitizo katika hesabu. Akiwa bado Kenya alikutana na akamposa Mary. Mnamo 2000, Jared alienda kuishi Andover, MA kuwa profesa anayetembelea wa hesabu kwa mpango wa majira ya joto katika Chuo cha Philips. Baada ya mpango huo kumalizika, alianza kufanya kazi kuelekea Masters katika hesabu iliyotumiwa katika Chuo Kikuu cha Washington. Wakati walikuwa katika shule ya kuhitimu, yeye na Mary waliolewa na mwishowe walipata binti wawili. Baada ya kupata MSc yake katika Applied Math Jared alipata kazi ya kufundisha ya ziada katika Chuo cha Highline huko Des Moines, WA, ambapo alikaa kwa miaka miwili kabla ya kupata nafasi ya umiliki katika Chuo cha Jamii cha Tacoma.

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Kazi: Profesa wa Math katikaChuo cha Jamii cha Tacoma huko Merika

Familia ya(kutoka Kenya): Hakuna mtu zaidi ya mkewe (ambaye ana familia huko Virginia). Wakati familia nyingi za Jared ziko Kenya, pia ana ndugu watatu wanaokaa Canada, Afrika Kusini, na Qatar mtawaliwa.

Lugha: Kiingereza (lugha rasmi ya biashara ya Kenya), Kiswahili (lugha ya kitaifa ya Kenya), na lugha hizi hufundishwa mara kwa mara shuleni, Luhya (lugha ya baba yake), na Kiluo (lugha ya mama yake), lugha za mwisho huzungumzwa katika vijiji vya mzazi husika. na nilikuwa nikiandikia familia huko. Ni kawaida kwa watu nchini Kenya kujua angalau lugha 3, lugha mbili za kwanza, lugha rasmi za nchi hiyo, na angalau moja kutoka kwa lugha ya mama.  

Burudani unazopenda: kusikiliza muziki na kupiga picha (na upendeleo wa mandhari na picha kwenye eneo)

Muzikiupendao: Afro beat na Jazz. Kwa mfano wasanii kama Hugh Masekela, Manu Dibango, Franco & TPOK Jazz, na Tabu Ley

Changamoto za lugha: maswala mengine katika matamshi ya maneno ambayo yanaonekana tofauti nchini Kenya (mfano ni "apple" ambayo kinywani mwake inasikika kama "epple") na maneno ya Kiingereza ya Uingereza (Kenya ilikuwa koloni la Uingereza) ambalo Wamarekani hawajui, kama "full stop" (kipindi) na "Z" (zed vs. zee)

Wanaweza kufanya bila: kuna vipindi vichache ambavyo vilionekana, lakini mawazo ya Jared . Bado, hapa kuna matukio mawili. Katika kazi yake ya kwanza kama mwalimu wa hesabu aliyeambatanisha katika Chuo cha Highline alikuwa akivaa kawaida kufundisha (kama maprofesa wengi, na jeans na tisheti). Siku moja, wakati alikuwa karibu kuingia darasani kwake, alisimamishwa na mfanyikazi, ambaye alimwuliza yeye ni nani. Alijibu kwamba yeye ndiye mwalimu na, ingawa wanafunzi na mwenzake kutoka darasa lililokuwa karibu walithibitisha, ilichukua dakika 30 au zaidi kwa mfanyakazi huyo kumruhusu Jared aingie darasani kwake. Wakati mkuu wake na wafanyikazi wenzake walishtuka na kumwambia aripoti tukio hilo, Jared aliamua kuiacha ianguke ili kuepusha athari kubwa kwa msimamizi wa zamani, ambayo baadaye alipokea barua ya kuomba msamaha. Kitu kingine ambacho mara kwa mara hufanyika kwake ni wakati wa kucheza gofu ya burudani. Inapendelea kwamba watu wanne wacheze kupitia uwanja wa gofu pamoja, kwa hivyo wakati mtu yuko peke yake, wafanyikazi wanamuuliza ajiunge na kikundi kidogo. Zaidi ya mara moja, kikundi cha wanaume wazungu watatu waliulizwa kumjumuisha katika raundi yao na "Jared" alikuwa sawa nao hadi, walipomwona walikataa. Jared hucheza gofu kwa kupenda mchezo sio kujumuika, kwa hivyo yeye hupunguza tu aina hizi za athari, akijua kabisa kuwa kukataliwa kuna uwezekano kwa msingi wa mbio yake, na wakati mwingine kudhaniwa kutokuwa na uwezo.   

Maneno yanayopendwa zaidi:

Katika "sheng" (mchanganyiko wa Kiingereza na Kiswahili): "sasa" (kuna nini?) Na vipi (nini kinaendelea?)

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Vitu:

• Funga: zawadi kutoka kwa shemeji yake, na bendera ya Kenya, na ngao nyeusi, nyekundu, kijani, nyeupe, na Kimasai mbele ya mikuki miwili nyeupe iliyovuka.

• Franco & TPOK Jazz, na rekodi za Tabu Ley: wanandoa wa vipenzi vyake, inaashiria upendo wake kwa muziki na uhusiano wake na nchi yake ya kuzaliwa.

 

 The translation in Swahili is from a free online translator, so it’s probably wrong in many instances. I apologize in advance to any Swahili speakers!

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Also, I apologize in advance for the imperfect pronunciation in the English recording