Words of farewell

With my retirement getting closer, I have been hosted to farewell lunches and dinners. My favourite among these events were the lunch hosted by former students at the Chinese University (CUHK) and the dinner hosted by the Hong Kong Association for Applied Linguistics (HAAL), at which a poem was read and former students got up and said nice things about me! I sent the following message to those who had attended these events, and at the request of some friends who wished to have it preserved "for posterity", I am posting the message on this site.

Friends,

Thanks for attending the recent farewells for me. Some of you came for both the CUHK and HAAL events. A person who has been with the English department for more than 30 years told me that never before had students, on their own, organized a farewell for a prof. Neither has HAAL held a farewell on this scale. I must have done something right in the past 15 years. After all, a retired prof. is not of much use, not even for a recommendation letter!

Please bear with me as you read this lengthy message. I may not have this opportunity again.

I’ll begin with a few confessions. For 15 years in HK, I did not own a mobile phone, a suit, or a Mercedes, a BMW, or a Lexus. I did not hob nob with the powerful, the rich, and the famous. I am not on Facebook and have never twittered. I did not learn Cantonese, of which I am ashamed. Yet, Hong Kong welcomed me and made me feel at home. I came for two years and stayed for 15, the longest I have been at a job. Other than Sri Lanka, Hong Kong is also where I have lived the longest.

This is a momentous year for me. I sold my house in Sai Kung to ensure a “retirement fund”. (As a result, I don’t have to work again.) I am about to become a grandfather. In two months, I’ll retire and will never have to teach a full-semester course. And I am becoming a Chinese national. Not a bad year at all!

All my life, I have been an activist on the side of the underdog, and have paid a price for that. In Hong Kong, my proudest moments have been voting for Leung Kwok-hung (“Long Hair”) at Legco elections, twice. Last Saturday, at 12.30am, I witnessed the “Goddess of Democracy” arrive on campus, the students triumphing over the university administration, certainly a proud moment for underdogs. Over the years, I have observed Mainland students, my advisees or otherwise, battling all odds to succeed academically in Hong Kong.

But, above all, my graduate students are my greatest pride. They have gone onto obtain responsible jobs, to become parents, to make a name for themselves in academia, and, above all, to become caring teachers. Most have kept in touch, some even stopping-by for an occasional visit. Nothing makes a teacher happier than to see his students succeed, to meet them again, at least once in a while. So, thank you.

You ask me what my future plans are. First, I want to better manage my diabetes, which I have battled for 25 years. It’s a disease that saps my energy and will gradually take my life away. Second, I want to travel more and stay longer at places I like. Third, I will consult in ELT, not for the income but to keep my brain alive.

As you move on in life, I hope you keep a sense of humor, laughing not only at the foibles of others but also at yourselves. I hope you’ll become advocates for justice and fair play. And, as I did, I hope you’ll follow your heart.

Over the years, you have brought me happiness and you all have a place in my heart.

George

Photo by Raymond Chan