British citizen learns Sindhi, teaches English to students in Sindh

Steve, a British citizen, wanted to see the world on a train before completing his university education and starting his PhD. He wanted to travel his journey by train from Britain to different countries, from Iran to Pakistan and then from Pakistan to India where his cousins ​​lived, but when he arrived in Sindh, he was so impressed by the traditional hospitality here. That they remained here permanently.

Wales-born Steve told International media outlet Independent Urdu that he had a lot of fun here in Sindh. he had heard the stories of Sindh’s hospitality and then he himself experienced the hospitality of Mehran valley. “Whenever I go to a town or a village, the people there greet me and respond so well that I can’t tell.” he said.

Steve, who came to Pakistan in 2010, is serving as the principal of a school in a small village in Sindh.

In these ten years, he has fully learned Sindhi and also he communicates in Sindhi language with local students and their parents.

He said that he started his journey from Britain first he reached Turkey, then Iran and from Iran he traveled to Pakistan. He stayed in Quetta for the first few months in Pakistan and later came to Karachi. Steve said that he spent a lot of time in Karachi and toured almost all of Sindh, including Sehwan, Hyderabad, Sanghar and Larkana. After some time he met NGOs and  started teaching English voluntarily in their school.

As well as being the principal of the school, he is also a ninth grade class teacher with 27 students. In addition, he teaches physics and math.

Regarding learning Sindhi language, he said that in 2011 during Eid holiday, a student invited him and he went to his village and sat in the otaaq (sindhi word for drawing room). Many people came and they were speaking Sindhi, but he did not understand, so he promised himself that he would learn Sindhi now and he would talk to them in Sindhi next year. Then that’s how he learned Sindhi.

Talking about Sindh’s hospitality, Steve said that people in different countries do business on the arrival of tourists, take money for accommodation, food and sightseeing of tourists, but here the people of Sindh don’t do business on tourism and when if a foreign tourist comes, the locals take him to their drawing room (otaaq) and food, accommodation and sightseeing are all free for the tourist.

Steve is also interested in carpentry. That’s what he does that when after finishing the school. He also makes some school supplies like broken table or bench etc. or make his own things. He also made wooden rugs to hold the Quran.

Steve added: ‘I made a table. I have a student who is also my friend, he is fond of  goats farming, so I also made a box for keeping baby goats.

Also Read: Sindh Cultural Day celebrates on 1 December