Romance about Immigration

Ignorance about curricula poses tasks of increasing difficulty to parents. We sit for a glass of mint tea and pancakes with honey and discuss whether our little children will go to the class of moral education, whether they will attend the Protestant class or shall they be oriented towards the Catholic grade. These are our three choices, currently no others are available. The program is a new in process, our children got the luck to be guinea pigs until it is known whether and what should be done in these school hours. As it is customary among modern parents, both dads sit at the computer and start seeking reviews on the matter. While waiting for the results, we the moms discuss whether katmi is traditionally Bulgarian or purely Moroccan specialty.

What does moral education mean? They will teach them not to pick up their noses or not to piss in the building entries? What is moral in the fifth grade? To give away the friend who is marking the lockers with chalk or foist under the table a wet towel to wipe his fingers before the teacher tells everyone to lift their arms? Oh no, it is not that; in Alberta it is the hour during which non-traditional couples and other formations are discussed. And they give the children relevant books to read them at home with their parents. My girlfriend politely wants to know whether at least we will be spared the need to practice at home – in the class they and we are the last non-divorced parents in a first marriage.

Protestant program is equally unclearly described as moral training. There is a mixture of religion, morality, holidays and suffering, and as always - a lot depends on the individual interpretation of the teacher. If you fall on a nice guy - great, but we can luck with the aunt, who taught them to relax in a bathtub with candles around. It was in third grade; she was sure she had seen too tense children at mathematics, and had recommended a bath with candles and a glass of wine. It will not work either.

And off they go to the Catholic class a young buddist of Vietnamese-Romanian origin, one Christian Orthodox grandchild of his Jewish grandfather and one little Muslim. Padre turns to be a cheerful young man who is at ease with his failure to explain the whole Bible and supporting theological literature within two hours per week. The little gamins like him because of the merry tall tales he tells them (the tales include talking animals, probably visualised as kind of teletubies because none of them had seen a live donkey), and because he does not give homework. I am not sure exactly who of the leading gods heard our hot prayers about repealing homework, see above about Alberta.

Along with talking animals and other wonders Padre speaks in good faith about the importance of an extended family for the children, about the hard lot of parents left alone under unfortunate circumstances, about the great honor and