What is TCK? T=Third C=Culture K=Kids are children who grow up in foreign cultures, outside their own native land. I am a TCKer, who grew up during the prosperous post-WWII years. With many military bases established after the war, a new subculture developed: that of transient families, affecting all walks of family life. TCK Journey Vol 1 is the first book in a series that chronicles my life-long journey as a TCKer, working backwards from my last job in 2016 towards my earliest years of the 1950's, covered in Vol 10.
This book begins in the year between 2013 and 2014, when a period of unemployment occurred - I made the mistake of turning 60 during my previous international teaching job in Kazakhstan. Their rule for foreigners [me] is: no work visas after age 60; as a result, I became unemployed through no-fault. For 15 months. Then one day, out of the blue, an offer of employment arrived, from The Director at The American School of Douala. In Grade 5, the class numbers were way high, so a new Grade 5 section had to open up and it needed a fully certified, vetted, very experienced international elementary teacher, yesterday. I met all those qualifications and best of all, was available, today. Even with the massive amount of negative publicity regarding Boka Haram and the Ebola scares, at age 62, I was pleased to accept the job when offered and have this "once more into the fray..." opportunity. Vol 1 describes some of the everyday events, people, and places during my first year in Cameroon as a Grade 5 classroom teacher at The International School in Douala.