Purple Pete Says Hello
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I am currently sitting in a computer lab at an Egyptian school. We only have a little time to work in the lab, but I felt like I had to share some of the events of this morning. At 6:30 we left Amy’s house to head to the school. Amy is the principal there, and she has been nice enough to let us stay with her while we are in Cairo. She is an amazing woman, and handles the intense responsibilities of her job with both expertise and grace.
At the beginning of the school day we met all the teachers at the daily meeting before classes start. I was paired with one of the Pre-K-2nd teachers, Sherin, and almost immediately after being introduced she asked, “Do you want to play a character in the puppet show?” Amy had told me that part of the morning ritual for the younger grades was a puppet show, but I had no idea that I might become a part of it. Undaunted, I said that yes, I would like to play a character.
Shortly after I made this theatrical commitment, I found myself standing with my teacher in front of a large playhouse/puppet theater. The students stood in lines facing the house as they did their morning greeting and exercise.
I was quickly indoctrinated into the ways of Purple Pete, the character I was to be playing.
“Purple Pete says this:” Sherin told me, “Dun dah dah DAHH!” I nodded, relieved that it was a relatively simple catchphrase. “Now you try,” she said.
“Dun dah DAHH!” I offered, imitating Purple Pete’s less than competent-sounding voice.
“Dun dah dah DAHH!” My Sherin exclaimed, correcting me mildly. She paused, clearly expecting me to try again.
“Dun dah dah DAHH!” I said, praying that my second effort would be sufficient. Fortunately it was, and we were able to move on.
After this exchange we participated in the children’s morning exercise, and then all too soon I found myself following Sherin through the window of the house, another “character” following close behind. The show went well; Purple Pete, Lambchop, and Aragoz discussed their weekends, encouraged the children to work hard, and sang a few songs.
I think my favorite aspect of the show was that while Lambchop and Purple Pete spoke English, Aragoz spoke Arabic. This was an ingenious method of helping the children with their English comprehension skills. Instead of either understanding the show or being completely lost, the children are given some context in their first language so that they can begin to understand more of their second.
My one mistake was that when it was time to say goodbye, I forgot to start with a “Dun dah dah DAHH!” and had to be reminded by Sherin. Other than that I must say I was an impressive puppeteer, and our second performance to the smallest children, who start their day later, was truly a high achievement in Drama.
I don’t know if it is simply a result of my getting older, or something that I can partially attribute to the trip, but I am finding that lately I am willing to take more risks than I usually am. I know for sure that I younger me would not have said yes to playing a character in the puppet show, even though it is a relatively minor action to take. I wouldn’t have said no, either, but instead would have smiled sheepishly, laughed, and said, “I don’t know.” For years this was my standard line when someone I was unfamiliar with asked a question that I wasn’t absolutely positive about. Whether it is because I am older, or because I am experiencing more, I am able to venture much further out of my comfort zone than before.
Posted on: October 18, 2010 | Categories: Education, Egypt, Videos
Congratulations Pete!!!! You were a terrrrrrrrrrific guest and we all can’t wait to have you visit again!
I love the videos! I think some of the kids were about to blow a couple of lungs doing the ABC song, though.
PS. Bella’s experience in Pompeii with the dogs reminds me of Miss Sakaki and Yamamaya in Azumanga Daioh, although I don’t think Wolf is going to swim to the states after her….
YOU WENT TO EGYPT, I’M SO JEALOUS!!!!!!!