A British Professor

It might seem a little strange to be writing a post about a person, and a teacher at that, but Peter Forsaith was big part my life while in Oxford. I hope that by writing this post I will be able to better remember him ten, twenty, thirty years down the road.

Photo by Sarah

During our time in Oxford, Dr. Peter Forsaith has been our liaison with Oxford Brookes University and our professor. When we stepped off the bus from Heathrow Airport he was there to greet us and help us with our luggage. He is an incredibly nice person who is always willing to answer our questions or refer us to someone who can.

He was our guide during the British Heritage trips we took in September to London, Stonehenge, Bath, Highclere Castle, Ironbridge and Salisbury. Throughout these trips he related historical facts to us about all of the places we were visiting. He also had the difficult task of keeping our group of 25 people together. He did this by holding his trusty yellow umbrella up high as a beacon for us to follow when moving from place to place. It was especially useful when we found ourselves in large crowds.

We have seen him nearly every week since we arrived since all people in my program were required to attend his class British Heritage and Culture. In that class he taught us about many British things: architecture, historical events, food, government and political parties, etc.

At our last class meeting this past Wednesday he brought wine, juice, and homemade mince pies for us to eat as a last mini-party as a group. There was no need for him to do this, but that is just the kind person that he is. It is so sad to think that I will probably never see him again, and if I do for some reason, we will not remember us, as is the way with teachers who have so many students over the years. There just isn't enough room in the mind to remember everyone.
In the four months that we have known him, we have found that Peter (British professors insist on being called by their first names) is quite the character, full of seeming contradictions that combined to make an intelligent and sweet man.

Some days he wore a lavender sweater vest with a pink collared shirt, others he wore his leather jacket and pants (when he had been riding his motorcycle). Our last day of class he even combined the two styles together by wearing his leather jacket with pale pink trousers. He thinks Harry Potter is rubbish and the Lord of the Rings is great. He is an atheist that studies Methodist history. He loves learning about architecture and collecting antique silver spoons.

This is a great example of how people come and go in our lives. The Oxford chapter of my life is ending soon, but I know that when a dust it off in the coming years to reminisce, Dr. Peter Forsaith will be a starring character in those memories.