Before moving to Dubai to take a corporate editing job and almost immediately getting fired by the risk management firm that had sponsored my relocation ("freelancer" can mean so many things), I spent two years living, working and acquiring Arabic in the occupied West Bank of Palestine. While my official address and job title were in the old city of Jerusalem, in reality I was a member of Bethlehem University's English faculty and a communications assistant, feature writer and magazine editor for the university's advancement office. My first year in Bethlehem I lived on campus with a community of Catholic Lasallian brothers, which was a challenging and rewarding experience in itself. The brothers were very gracious, especially considering I may have been the most godless man in the holy land.
My path to the Middle East was circuitous, but rooted in a profound experience studying Arabic in Beirut in 2013. You might be able to learn a lot about the Middle East on Twitter, but at a certain point it only makes sense to go see it for yourself. After receiving my political science degree in 2014, I realized graduating early wasn't that advantageous if you didn't have any money. I worked in construction, and then as a deckhand on a small cruise ship. We traversed the entire Eastern Seaboard, the Erie Canal, the Great Lakes, Quebec Province, the Bahamas and the Turks & Caicos. I used the money I saved working on the ship to attain TEFL certification and fund my flight to Palestine in 2016.
As the first full time volunteer in the history of Bethlehem University, I taught remedial and standard level English courses, helped establish the university's remedial English tutoring program, and volunteered extensively as an editor and feature writer for the university's development office. My primary role in the communications office was serving as a member of the Bethlehem University News magazine's editorial committee.
In my free time, I achieved professional proficiency in spoken Arabic and helped establish Palestine's first ultimate frisbee team. Throughout my time in the West Bank I coached, played and volunteered for Ultimate Palestine, the country's only ultimate frisbee organization. In 2018, I published an [essay in SKYD magazine about my experience playing and coaching with the team] (https://skydmagazine.com/2017/12/putting-palestine-on-the-map/). I now serve as a member of Ultimate Palestine's external executive board.
