Above: Lev Tolstoy railway station, Russia Wednesday 7 December 2025 Ankara, Türkiye Above: Ankara in winter “We live only to discover beauty. All else is a form of waiting.” Kahlil Gibran Above: Lebanese-American writer Kahlil Gibran (1883 – 1931) I sit in my room on a December evening in Ankara with the windows open to… Continue reading The big chill / The last station
Tag: education
A cacophony of sax and violins?
Sunday 7 December 2025 There is a familiar joke — one that sounds almost like a mondegreen (a misunderstood or misinterpreted word or phrase resulting from a mishearing of the lyrics of a song) — That people don’t want “sex and violence” in schools, but everyone loves “sax and violins”. It is a playful pun, yes, but it captures something surprisingly… Continue reading A cacophony of sax and violins?
Lament of the Akedah
Saturday 6 December 2025 Ankara, Türkiye There are stories humanity tells itself when the world grows too large to understand. Among the oldest, the Akedah — the Binding of Isaac — stands as a wound passed from generation to generation. A father raises a knife over his own child, convinced that the divine has demanded… Continue reading Lament of the Akedah
The Oppressed Pedagogy
Above: Socrates teaching Sunday 19 October 2025 Ankara, Türkiye Education as Power Throughout history, the most dangerous person to any oppressive system has not been the warrior or the rebel — but the teacher. Throughout history, great thinkers have recognized that education is not merely about learning facts — It is about shaping the mind… Continue reading The Oppressed Pedagogy
The Academy of Joy (2)
Wednesday 15 October 2025 Ankara, Türkiye Above: Fountain of the Nymphs in Kızılay Square in Ankara (1930) Reading about René Daumal’s Le Mont Analogue has led my mind to consider – Above: French writer René Daumal (1908 – 1944) Let us call it an idea, for lack of a better word – The quest for enlightenment,… Continue reading The Academy of Joy (2)
Next stop upon request (Runaway train)
Above: The logo of Swiss Federal Railways – the national railway company of Switzerland The train lurches with a sudden screeech, the hum of forward motion swallowed by the high eee of braking and the collective gasp of surprised passengers clutching at poles and seats. The train halts between Egnach and Arbon, a silent pause in motion.… Continue reading Next stop upon request (Runaway train)
Another season
Sunday 16 February 2025 Sometimes words are like tears. Sometimes they quietly emerge from out of the corners of our perception. At other times they pour out of us like the torrent of my rushing river. And there are times when they cannot flow. My research on this calendar day has drawn me to 1923.… Continue reading Another season
The Academy of Joy
Thursday 6 February 2025 Eskişehir, Türkiye The former head teacher, dismissed and disillusioned, lay in his restless bed, his limbs heavy with exhaustion, his thoughts a storm of injustice and regret. Losing your job can be a hideous blow, both to the pocket and to the ego. The best way to deal with it is… Continue reading The Academy of Joy
Of a jazz that I feel
Above: Composition for Jazz, Albert Gleizes (1915), Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York City Eskişehir, Türkiye Wednesday 24 July 2024 Last Sunday evening at Starbucks with a new student after my classes at the school have ended. He is an educated man, a well-seasoned man, despite being half my age. Not that unusual. But to… Continue reading Of a jazz that I feel
“…and then I built a school.”
Landschlacht, Switzerland, 25 October 2016 Watching the present American elections feels akin to watching a drunk publicly soil himself – you want to look away but the drunk is so loud and obvious and different from your common experience that you can´t keep yourself from staring. There is so much that feels repugnant and offputting about… Continue reading “…and then I built a school.”