#Note 65: Smart people ≠ great teachers

Squid, struggle, small town, stories

What’s up?

This week had all the things!

I had my second of three professional psychiatry exams (a bit more nervous about this than the first), joined small group at a new church (which was really good!) and am in the middle of moving (which is always super stressful). Also had at least one emotionally heavy day this week. But overall, it’s been a good week!

I’ve seen Squid Game too—and loved it. It’s my kind of show: using low-key horror vibes to explore the dark side of what it means to be human. And it doesn’t pull any punches on both fronts. Any wonder I was super into it? You start the show thinking it’s going to be about who survives, but that’s not what it’s about at all. It’s about who get to hold on to their humanity in the face of overwhelming odds. (I think it’s also an indictment on reality TV, though.)

(And yes, I realise I’m spoiling it mildly but if you haven’t seen it by now, you probably need a bit more of a push to check it out. That said, it does get quite graphic, and I realise we all stomach that differently.)

Here’s a couple tweets I shared after seeing it that sum up my thoughts:

Dọ́kítà Ayọ̀mídé @DocAyomide

I love how the stakes of Squid Game aren’t about survival, but about being human. In every episode, the big question isn’t: Will Gi-hun survive? It’s: Will Gi-hun hold on to his humanity? That’s the question behind the tension in every horrifying moment.

Dọ́kítà Ayọ̀mídé @DocAyomide

That’s also why I didn’t like the ending. It didn’t feel like forced tension in how it didn’t it jibe with the theme of the whole show as I thought I’d been understanding it. Going to his daughter might’ve been predictable, but it’d have fit, right? Or am I reading this wrong?

Errata: in a previous email, talking about the #EndSARS protests against police brutality in Nigeria, I’d said the government had shot unarmed youth protesters on 10 October 2020. The actual date was 20 October, and I’m mortified by the mistake!

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Teaching love (essay)

In this week’s essay I reflect on teaching and teachers. I haven’t had a lot that made a big difference, but the few who were had outsized impact on me. For me that was a French teacher in junior secondary, a math teacher in senior and my home tutor, who I’ve talked about in another essay. What teachers were like that for you?

I love teaching.

That moment when the student’s eyes light up as the ideas fall into place? I live for it. Or when they are glowing with the new realisation of what is now within their grasp? Sign me up. It’s what I first fell in love with when I first discovered my love for it while teaching my brother maths when he was about to enter uni. And it’s what has kept me finding ways to teach everywhere I’ve gone and in every job I’ve done, from medical students and junior doctors to volunteer mentorship with young people. It’s why I love being a Write of Passage mentor.

I love it all because it’s by teaching that we learn to be human.

You can read the rest of the essay here: Those who struggle teach best

I sometimes make fun of how small a town Ipswich is compared to the larger cities I’ve lived and felt at home in: Lagos, Edinburgh, London. But there’s something quaint about small towns, and Ipswich isn’t even that small, really. It’s has its charms though. I thought this night photo captured some of that charm.

What do you like best about where you live?

History (proverb)

The child born after historical events, is at least old enough for the stories.

We can only experience so much, but we can learn as much as we want. If we want.

Talk soon,

Doc Ayomide

PS. The Being Human website and the weekly Notes on Being Human are both completely free, but if you’d like to buy me a coffee—or more!—you can use the button below.