ETA Narrative: Divya Patel
Finding Community Through the Heart (ใจ) of Thailand
When I first arrived in Thailand as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant (ETA), I expected to spend my year building independence and navigating cultural exchange in an unfamiliar place. What I did not expect was how deeply the people I met would transform my understanding of connection across cultures and what it truly means to find a sense of community away from home. These relationships are best understood through the Thai word jai (ใจ), which translates literally as “heart-mind.” Unlike in the English language, where we tend to distinguish between thinking with the “mind” and feeling with the “heart,” jai brings them together. As I learned more about Thai language and culture during my experience, I began to recognize how jai ใจ is rooted in the way that people understand their relationships with themselves, family, and community.
I was lucky enough to engage with this worldview through Fulbright. In my first year (2024-2025), I was placed as an ETA at Wapi Pathum School in Maha Sarakham, a rural province in Thailand’s Northeastern region of Isaan. I had the opportunity to teach English to upper secondary students and learn about Isaan culture. After completing my ETA grant in Wapi Pathum, I renewed for a second year in Bangkok, where I split my time between teaching at Satri Si Suriyothai School and supporting ETA programming as a program assistant at the Fulbright Thailand office. While these two experiences were vastly different, they both taught me the importance of showing up for others and leading with the heart. I came to appreciate the many ways jai shapes how people connect with each other.
Gleng Jai (เกรงใจ), which translates directly as “cautious heart” in the Thai language, is the concept of having high consideration and respect for others. It reflects a desire for social harmony, avoiding impositions, and saving face. As an American, gleng jai in social and professional settings took some getting used to, a sharp turn away from the direct nature of conversations in the United States. It also described the feeling I had as I walked out of the doors of the Buriram airport with my two suitcases and into the Thai heat. Having arrived a week late to my placement in Wapi Pathum due to illness, I was afraid that I had inconvenienced my host teachers and school community. I didn’t know what awaited me on the other side of the doors, and I was incredibly nervous for the journey ahead. However, once I reached the exit, I saw my host teachers, P’Bubble and P’Lucky, waving and smiling. “Mai dtong gleng jai (don’t be gleng jai),” they said, “Welcome to Isaan!”
Throughout the year, there were many moments when I experienced the deep consideration people have for each other, especially in Isaan, where community is often considered an integral part of cultural identity. I learned that thoughtfulness doesn’t always need to be vocalized. From neighbors leaving bags of mangoes hanging on my doorstep during rainy summer months to students teaching me how to shred papaya for spicy somtum, I felt it in the everyday moments I shared with others. One person who exemplified this was my neighbor, P’Phonphit. A retired English teacher from Wapi Pathum School and former teaching exchange participant to South Carolina, she understood the opportunities and challenges of cultural exchange. On the weekends, P’Phonphit took me on walks in her rice fields, brought me on chore runs in neighboring towns, and taught me how to make vegetarian (jay - เจ) versions of local foods like laab (ลาบ) and gaeng het (แกงเห็ด). During our meals, we often discussed how to facilitate conversational English practice for students. “Mânjai (มั่นใจ) 100%!!” she told me. Mânjai, or to have a firm heart, means confidence and assurance in Thai. P’Phonphit told me that the best way for the students to learn and love learning would be to increase their confidence, as they were often shy to speak English for fear of making mistakes. Her advice became a central focus of my teaching throughout the year.
“I AM BRAVE! I AM SMART! I AM CONFIDENT!”
I had my 12th graders repeat this weekly, to the excitement of some and the mild embarrassment of others. Beyond these affirmations, I looked for ways to make learning English less intimidating and more interactive during our one-hour sessions. At a towering 5’1, I often had to think of creative ways to capture the attention of a classroom full of teenagers. We played lots of games like Jeopardy and Scattergories, argued in silly debates, and presented our favorite foods. I also made a fool of myself in Thai (unintentionally), showing them that even teachers make mistakes! Watching my students open up and slowly become more confident in their ability to speak in front of their classmates was one of the most rewarding parts of my teaching experience. Most of them felt comfortable enough to ask questions during my office hours, play sports together at the park, and attend my French conversation club. Mânjai 100%!!
Over time, my students taught me a lot about where they came from. They were proud to be from Maha Sarakham province and were always eager to share their culture with others. This sense of pride and generosity felt very natural in a town that had just 20,000 people, yet was the most festive place I had ever experienced. I came to recognize this dynamic through the two Thai concepts of phoomjai (ภูมิใจ), to have pride in one’s identity and accomplishments, and naamjai (น้ำใจ), which literally means “water from the heart” and describes a spirit of generosity. Both were especially visible during local community celebrations, from morlam (หมอลำ) festivals to school Sports Week. Wapi Pathum is famous for its contribution of the long drum, a key instrument that keeps the beat in morlam, a Isaan traditional folk art form combining storytelling, dance, and music. At the district’s annual morlam Long Drum festival, entire villages came together to perform while spectators bought handicrafts and refreshments from local vendors. During Sports Week, the same enthusiasm carried into the school community as students cheered on each other’s teams, put on performances showcasing their heritage, and came together for a school-wide parade through the town. As someone who had arrived in Wapi Pathum with very little knowledge of Isaan, I was fortunate to be welcomed into a community that was not only proud of its roots, but eager to share them.
As I wrapped up my year in Wapi Pathum and took on my next adventure in Bangkok, these lessons stayed with me. Right before I left, my friend P’Aey and her family invited me to their restaurant, Green Home Cafe, where we had spent countless hours together practicing English, making coffee, and playing games. They had become my second family in Wapi, and Green Home Cafe had become my second home. “Do you understand…” P’Aey asked me as we walked around the garden, examining the butterfly pea flowers that were also growing in my family’s garden, a gift from her. She had explained that throughout my year, she wanted me to feel supported, welcomed, and loved, carrying the lessons and experiences from my year in Isaan with me wherever life took me next. She also shared that if her own daughter decided to move away, she hoped that she would find the same kindness and consideration from the people around her. Khao jai (เข้าใจ), I told her. I understand. This phrase, which translates literally as “to enter the heart,” has become more to me than just comprehension. It also came to mean recognizing the feelings, experiences, and hopes of others. When we move on, we bring along the lessons of the people and places that shaped us. Though I was leaving Isaan, the sense of belonging and kindness P’Aey, P’Phonphit, and others had shown me in Wapi Pathum was something I hoped to carry forward.
In Bangkok, my experience took a slightly different shape. I transitioned from a first year ETA navigating a new teaching environment to supporting the next cohort of ETAs as they began their own journeys. I also had the opportunity to work alongside wonderful colleagues and program staff who make Fulbright’s cultural exchange programs possible. As I supported others in their exchanges and found my own community in Bangkok, I drew on the many meanings of jai ใจ that I had learned and experienced in Isaan. Through Fulbright, I have come to understand that the impact of cultural exchange extends far beyond the grant year, as it lives on in the relationships we build, communities we become part of, and the lessons we carry on.
Divya Patel, 2024-2025 ETA and 2025-2026 ETA (Renewal)
at Wapi Pathum School, Maha Sarakham and Satri Si Suriyothai School, Bangkok.
