My evening commute with a physics enthusiast

 After using Bolt as my mode of transportation back home for nearly 4 months, I've noticed that most drivers are well-educated, and it's always disappointing to see these well-educated people not putting their education to use. It always makes me lose hope because it reminds me that there is a chance that I will not use the knowledge I learned in school or that my school smarts will lead to nothing.

But my recent drive home with Andrew made me see a different perspective. Andrew picked me up from school at 4:00 p.m. The first few minutes were quiet until he told me that he thought my school was only for Indians and he was surprised that I went there. I laughed and told him that there were many “locals” at the school too. He proceeded to make a pretty good guess by saying that my school uses a different curriculum, I told him that he was correct. He asked what curriculum I take then to which I replied the IB. He didn’t sound interested in the IB but he wanted to know if I can apply to Tanzanian Universities after I complete high school. I assured him that I could and that they only needed to see my IB credits. He had an "ooooh" moment when he heard my response. He then talked about the principal pass and his own college applications. He informed me that two subjects you did particularly well in are what most Tanzanian universities consider.

He said he studied PCB in high school, which stands for Physics, Chemistry, and Biology. He confessed to me that while he adores maths and physics, he dislikes biology. He claims that memorization is essential to biology. He adds with more vigour, "But physics, maths, and chemistry are about your understanding. I agreed and nodded, but I also let him know that biology is one of my favourite subjects. He said, "Your memory must be really good." I didn't reply because I think I have a bad memory.

My lack of response was followed by a wave of silence. Normally, I like staying silent but I felt rude not replying to his previous statement. To break the silence I told him that I don’t take physics anymore because my final secondary school physics exam was difficult. “It was demoralising”, I told him. “There was one question that required us to find the heat capacity of a waterfall using only its height”, I told him to show how difficult the exam was. His response to my babbling surprised me, “OK that question is difficult but the trick to that question is changing the potential energy to heat energy and from that, the heat capacity can be found”, he said with an easiness in his voice. He had just explained one of the hardest questions I had ever come across in an exam room and he made it sound so simple, I was awe-struck. He really loved physics. I told him his explanation makes sense to which he replied “Of course, it does”. I smiled at his response. 

“I never used that knowledge since I left the classroom”, he said out of nowhere. “I went to university and the job market was tight, so I’m driving for Bolt and it’s alright. I’m making money and I’m feeding myself, so I’m alright”, he continued. He genuinely felt okay with what he was doing, he wasn’t sad or anything of the sort. He was a stark contrast to the driver I wrote about previously who wished things turned out differently. Everyone has their own perspectives on life and the things that happen to them. He was just voicing his perspective to me that day. I was left quiet, thinking about what he said and comparing his worldview to my own. 

I think to make me look less awkward, he asked me if I had any siblings, I told him I have an older sister in her mid-20s. He seemed interested and he asked where she went to university to which I told him Ardhi University (Ardhi means land in Swahili, so Ardhi University is a university that concentrates on land, construction and engineering). “That’s where I went to university”, he told me with a smile on his face. He politely asked when my sister graduated from university, I told him the year and he smiled afterwards. He told me that my sister might know this professor who was full of funny antics. He told me the professor’s name but I forgot the name immediately (It was very hard to pronounce). “Ardhi is tough academically, harder than UDSM. UDSM is about partying but Ardhi is more serious”, he said, comparing Ardhi with the best university in the country, The University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM). I heard about the partying scene at UDSM but I know the extent of the parties, he made it seem like UDSM students like to party.

Talking about his time at university lightened the mood for both of us and it seemed like there was nothing left for us to say. The rest of the trip was mostly quiet except for a question or two. After 49 minutes he dropped me off and I thanked him for the trip. The trip might have only been 49 minutes but my conversation with Andrew made me see a different perspective.