I wrote this poem as a tribute to a woman I met when I worked as a nurse’s aide. She was young- in her fifties- a remarkable pianist, and stricken with dementia. She passed her time organizing our linen carts, and occasionally had lucid moments in which we could engage in brilliant conversation. Her husband was a devoted, loving man who took the ferry every day to visit her. I was deeply...
Read MoreI’m currently reading Jhumpha Lahiri’s book In Other Words which is in fact her journey into learning another language- in this case Italian. The book resonates with me because I also feel so thrilled when I feel the word in my bones, feel it bouncing off my tongue, and feel understood by a native speaker. I taught myself a decent amount of Greek, and would thrill at the sounds...
Read MoreAfter 25 years of teaching, I still love my job. My clients reveal the strange irregularities of English grammar which keep it fascinating. This week, my Iranian engineer wrote a question using the verb to be. We all know that the verb to be conjugates as follows: I am, you are, he is, we are , you are, and they are, for it is an amalgamation from two verbs in Old English. My student wrote...
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