Village People Lebanese Style

I took my class skiing at the beginning of this week. We went to Faqra (sounds quite rude when you say this in English) and spent two days up there. The snow was OK, by next week I think it will be well past its best. Going to Faqra is a tradition at my school. The kids all look forward to reaching 3rd grade because that's the grade when you spend your first night sleeping up in the lodge. I'm not sure some of the parents feel the same way; it's not easy letting your kids out of your sight when things are still so unpredictable politically.

Beginners group is tough work

Many of them spent the first day just learning how to stand up on their skis. It's really the toughest for those who have never tried it before. They have to use muscles they didn't know they even possessed, it's cold, it's tiring, etc.

The amazingly talented and multi-lingual coaches

Andre was there organising it all. He had the"3 Nos" - no nagging, no complaining, no whining. We added a 4th, no moaning. He liked that one, being francophone it was a new word for him. Now's the part that inspired my title. I was thinking about the ski coaches, the "monitors." Basically they're all men, young and old, from the villages nearby. What amazes me is that they conduct their ski lessons in either Arabic (OK, that's easy), English, or French. I wouldn't be surprised if they could also manage in Italian and Greek! It made me wonder, would anything comparable happen in my home country, England? The recollection of my grandmother's take on language flashed back to me. She was a real Victorian, born in 1890. She reckoned that anyone could understand English, you just had to speak loudly enough!

You'd have thought the kids would have had enough snow after all that skiing on the first day, but no. They were still full of energy (where do they get it from?) so we went out and had a snowman making competition.

Seven snowmen soon took shape, I wonder if they're still there

It was such a peaceful two days. Really, it's hard to get a grip on reality and remember that we are going through such turmoil. We seem to be heading closer and closer to some kind of disastrous outcome, either in the region or, more specifically, in Lebanon. I once heard someone say, "If they give birth in Palestine we have the labour pains in Lebanon." They said that was true for everything that takes place among our nearest neighbours. So, I just want to focus on the scene below that shows the mountains just before sunset; and try to continue my pledge, "Be optimistic!"

The Lebanese mountains at their best, covered in snow