I thought I'd take a few minutes to write while I wait to meet with my professor about my final research paper. After this last assignment, I'll have completed all the course work for my Master's in Secondary Education! Yay!
At the Starbucks on Michigan Avenue and Madison, sitting next to a table of guys--two from Venezuela, one from Chicago--talking about cheating on their girlfriends--"I do it all the time, man! It's an important part of being a man! What happens in Chicago stays in Chicago!"-- and how people in Germany like to drink cold beer. And that different beer has a different taste. (Really??? Huh.) Scintillating conversation, I know--actually quite animated--but I can't help but listen. These guys seem to be quite the Casanovas. Not.
I've been thinking more about that Shakespeare series I blogged about yesterday, which we're tentatively titling "What Would Shakespeare Do?" It's going to require me to bone up on my Shakespeare, which is always a good thing. I think I've selected a strong initial list of ten plays to cover in the first book--the typical "classroom standards": Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Macbeth, Twelfth Night, etc. But I want to change it up a bit with some of the lesser known plays like, for example, Coriolanus which has just been made into a movie directed by the great Ralph Fiennes who also stars in it alongside Vanessa Redgrave. Of course, the purpose here is to demonstrate how each of these plays has social significance in today's society, thus making them more accessible to high school students. At any rate, I'm looking forward to the opportunity of combining three of my passions: writing, teaching, and literature in an effort to positively effect young peoples' lives. I really love working with high school kids, especially those who for one reason or another were born into an environment without the stability and advantages so many of us take for granted. As any teacher will tell you--hopefully--there's nothing quite like seeing that light bulb go off in a student's eyes when you see that they "get" what you've been teaching them. And then, months later, when you see one of your students and they tell you how much they miss you teaching them...there's really nothing quite like it.
A couple weeks ago when I went to see "J. Edgar," the girl at the theatre who was taking tickets happened to be one of my favorite students from Al Raby. Keniece was in my 7th period Honors Class and was one of many I looked forward to having in class each day. Keniece saw me and had a big smile on her face as she exclaimed "Mr. M! It's so good to see you!" We chatted for a bit. She told me she hadn't been able to go to DePaul as she'd hoped because her financial aid hadn't gone through but was doing well at Truman College with another friend of hers, Amanda, who was also in that Honors class. She told me she and Amanda had just been talking about me the other day, wondering how teaching was going for me, etc etc. It's not an exaggeration to say that seeing Keniece that Sunday afternoon made not only my day, but my week. I think of those 80 or so kids often and am always on the look-out for them as I go about my day. It's kids like Keniece and Amanda and countless others like them that make me glad to have gone into education. I wish them all the very best.
On a completely different note...I finished "The Sense of an Ending," that Julian Barnes novel I mentioned a few days back. A great book, a thought-provoking book, especially for those of us who are all-too-rapidly approaching middle-age or older. It's the kind of novel that lingers long after you've turned the final page. It's got me thinking about time and my perception of time, aging, and memory. I'm not sure I like thinking about those things as it makes me think of death and how all of us only have a limited amount of time in which to accomplish our dreams...or not accomplish them as is all too often the case. I am in awe of Mr. Barnes's facility with prose. Not sure how I feel about the last five pages though. There's a twist I didn't expect and didn't quite "get" until I went back and reread it and still I'm not sure I've "got" it. No matter...I recommend the novel to anyone who cares about great fiction.
Wrapping this up. My professor awaits.
Shout-outs to my seniors of Al Raby's Class of 2011! I wish you all the best and thanks again for the experience!
QUESTION OF THE DAY: (or rather Word of the Day) Eviscerate. It came up in my acting class last night. A definition, anyone? I know what it means, just checking to see if you do.
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