A Career that Makes a Difference
I think I have one of the most important jobs in the world. I
didn't realize it at the time, because I took it as a temporary
job until, what I thought, a real or permanent job came along. I
was an accountant, so I was looking for something along that
line. I know when I was in college, people thought in terms of
preparing for jobs as a lawyer, doctor, teacher, engineer, or
businessman.
But the problem in the world today is that there's so much
violence, and it seems to be never-ending. And I believe the
basic reason for this is a lack of communication and an
understanding of the different cultures that exist around the
world. And the basic reason for this is that there are so many
different languages spoken in the world. If we all could speak
one language, I think things could be a lot easier to deal with.
Now English is accepted as being the International Language of
the world, and at the moment I'm teaching English in Argentina,
and have been doing so for about 20 years. I became involved in
this profession down here accidentally because I married an
Argentine woman in New York who became lonely up there for her
family so we moved down here. I thought this work would only be
temporary, as I mentioned above, but eventually I realized that
this job was really one of the most important jobs one could
ever do. They would learn about your culture and you would learn
about theirs. And they would get to know you as a person from a
country that many foreigners think is the biggest bully in the
world, and it could change their minds regarding this in
realizing that there are many good Americans as well.
Now if you really want to see the world cheaply, and to get to
understand other cultures and make a real, but maybe small,
contribution in bringing peace to the world, become an English
teacher in the foreign country of your choice. I know some who
travel around the world this way by earning a little money in
teaching English in one country before traceling to the next,
and the next, and the next. On the other hand, one of my friends
who taught English in Argentina moved to China under a 3 year
contract to teach English there. So if you want to prepare for a
career that will really make a difference in the world, you
could become an English teacher for the foreign born in a
foreign country.