A Portrait of the Artist as an English Teacher

A Portrait of the Artist as an English Teacher

(The Calling of an English Instructor)

by Lee Quick

Introduction by Janpha Thadphoothon

The following article was slightly adapted by Janpha Thadphoothon as another contribution to the 2002/2 Intellectual Seminar facilitated by the Lians at the School of Languages and International Education, the Unibersity of Canberra, ACT, Australia. It is based on an  interview with Acharn Sakorn Viradechachat of the English Department of the Faculty of Humanities at Dhurakijpundit University. It was first published by  the Bamboo Forum in October, 1999.

I have changed the title of the article from “The Calling of an English Instructor” to “ A Portrait of the Artist as an English Teacher” because, to me and many people who know him,  Ajarn Sakorn is an artist who always remains true to himself. He is an ordinary Thai villager who proudly stands up and declares: “I want to become an English teacher.”   Like the story of James Joyce’s Stephen Daedalus, it is the story of  a developing being.  While  Stephen gained an affirmation of his artistic calling when he was a teenager, Ajarn Sakorn happened to find his at the age of thirty: an English teacher, no more no less. At the age of thirty he knew exactly what he would like to do in life.   Thoreau knew what drummer it was that he was marching to. Many of us do not, and may never will.     

For most people who know him, Ajarn Skornl is like a Renaissance man. In addition to portrait sketching and teaching English, he is one of the most talented poets I have ever known. Though most of his poems are simple, they are  full of life and passion, and are enjoyable to read. His acute observation of the world has always amazed me. I remember one evening in early December 1998 when we were lying on the football field. When the winter breeze blew the scattered dried leaves along the cement walking path, he asked me to listen to its sound. He said, “ Listen to that Janpha. Isn’t that a wonderful sound?” I listened quietly for a moment and heard that sound. “ Oh, yes indeed.”  I was so amazed by the discovery, for it never occurred to me before that such phenomenon was an art offered by Nature. 

Lee Quick, better known as Ajarn Lee,  born almost 60 years ago in Long Island, California, has spent most of his life in France. Mr Quick loves telling people his Middle East experince of the 60s. And he often ends his anecdotes with  his unforgettable experience in Indonesia where he had to deal with the pirates in the 70s.  He married a Thai woman almost a decade ago. The couple have a big brown dog, albeit no children.    

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The middle of five children, little Sakorn, known by all in his village as ‘Tua’, was born to agricultural parents in rural Nakorn Si Thammarat province during the reign of King Rama VII.  He was four years old when Siam (Thailand’s former name) became a constitutional monarchy.  For Tua, the winds of political change were far away. And The Great Depression of the 1930s and the build-up to the Second World War were even more remote.  His little village of twenty families had no radio and was a half-day’s walk from the nearest road.

Even though the world was in turmoil, Tua’s childhood world was happy and carefree.  There was plenty of food.  The tropical weather was mild.  Family and friends were abundant, near and caring.  Tua grew up without even noticing it.  He naturally assumed that life would continue as he knew it, and that he would follow the footsteps of his father and his father’s father before him. He sometimes attended the temple school in the village on that road a half day away, but he did not see, nor care much, that what was being taught there had much importance for him and the good life he knew.  He never finished his studies.

In 1952, at the age of twenty, he and a friend set off on a lark to see what life was like in the big city.  He did odd jobs that came his way to support himself in Bangkok.  The following year he had to make the first real decision of his life.  Rather than being drafted into a military unit that he might not like, young inductee Sakorn decided to enlist and was sent to the Army Infantry School in Lopburi.

During his eight year military career he gained maturity, discipline and self-confidence and rose to the rank of sergeant.  But something even more important happened to Sergeant Sakorn during that time.  His unit was working with the Joint United States Military Assistance Group (JUSMAG) and he found, to his surprise, that he remembered quite a lot of the English he had learned back at the temple school.  He also found that he was able to learn and imitate the language and accents of his American counterparts quite easily and naturally.  He had always been a mimic.  Even from his early childhood he was able to copy the language and mannerisms of the people around him.  Now his ability to copy others began to payoff.  He was made interpreter by his unit commander and played a pivotal role in ensuring communications between the Thai and American military forces in Thailand.

By the time Sergeant Sakorn retired from the army, he knew he liked the English Language, had a real facility for it, and was rather good at it.  But he didn’t know what to do about it.  As luck would have it, he met some Australian missionaries and, after receiving training, was invited to go with them as an English Language Teaching Assistant to Laos.  It was there, during 1963, at the age of thirty, that he found his calling:  “This is what I want to do.  I’ll become an English teacher.”

Teaching Assistant Sakorn knew he was getting a late start on making a career, but he also knew he would do whatever it took to succeed.  Since he hadn’t finished secondary school, he had much to make-up.  Starting in 1965, on his return from Laos, he studied for and passed his Lower Certificate of Education, Higher Certificate of Education and the College Entrance Exam, while at the same time teaching English in private schools in Nakorn Si Thammarat.

When Acharn Sakorn completed his B. A. in Education in Bangkok in 1977, he already was a seasoned English Instructor.  He continued practicing his trade in public High Schools and as a private tutor.  Then in 1982, he got lucky again:  he met a student from Dhurikijpundit University.  One thing led to another and quickly Acharn Sakorn joined the faculty at DPU, where he taught English until his retirement in 1998.

Acharn Sakorn still teaches English at DPU on a contract basis and cannot imagine himself doing anything else.  He says that DPU allowed him to finally ‘establish’ himself.  He adds, “DPU is like home.”  Although Acharn Sakorn has had a rich and interesting life, he underlines that DPU is “the best work-place” he has ever found.

Looking back on his calling, Acharn Sakorn reflects, “I wanted to help others and make myself useful.”  With a little thought, he adds, “What I teach, I must be.”  A generation of DPU students remember Acharn Sakorn for his gentle dedication to his calling and are thankful that he was kind enough to make himself useful in their lives.  Colleagues also recognize Acharn Sakorn for his dedication and appreciate that they can always count on him for a positive word and a shining smile.

As with most people who have a public persona, these people also have hidden talents. Acharn Sakorn is no exception.   He sees a parallel between the finding and realizing of his calling and the discovery and nurturing of his long-time hobby:  portrait sketching.  One day back in Laos, he decided to try to sketch a picture of President John F. Kennedy from a photo.  He was pleased with his first effort and ever since has worked to improve his technique.  For Acharn Sakorn, portrait sketching is a hobby that not only provides him with personal satisfaction, but also entertains and often honors his friends and colleagues.  As with English, his skill with a pen or pencil is the direct result of his natural ability to copy things around him.  He has a large portfolio of portraits and is kind enough to share a few with the Bamboo Forum.

Based on a wealth of life experiences, Acharn Sakorn offers this message for students:  “You need to see the importance of education early; appreciate the natural abilities you have and the facilities you are provided; and make the best of every opportunity.”  Good advice from a man who came a long way to his calling.