Pandora's Other Box

Every Memorial Day week end we take the time, in between parades, barbeques and beach parties, to think about those who gave their lives on behalf of our country’s ideals. This piece is not about griping or preaching; it is about a reality which       seems to dodge many who celebrate the memory of someone who may have been family, friend or just a local boy/girl who died in the midst of his or her service time. Most of these kids, with the exception of those we “affectionately” called ( with all due respect, earned in spades ) “lifers”, went into the armed forces to get away from a miserable or non existent home life, a bleak future or just –back in the Viet Nam era, which is my reference point- because their numbers came up in the draft. Yet, this same group mixture of malcontents, misfits, non-believers, believers and volunteers, eventually became a group of trained individuals who, at some point, decided that in order to meet their commitment ...

As a sometimes ESL teacher, it is my appointed duty to bring understanding of this language to many who sometimes, just shake their heads up in the process of learning this somewhat convoluted tongue we speaketh… ( or some such…) It is more of a crazy language than you might think. After all, it is a handed down hybrid of a language which has roots in Latin, Welsh, German, of course Anglo Saxon and other such original idioms. And in our country, with its storied life during which people from just about every country in the world has come to roost this, Our English, has become a repository of bits and pieces of each and every one of them. Yes, Our English. Remember: for our British Brethren we are those Yanks who speak with a funny accent. And who say funny things. And who reahlly, deah… can’t speak the language in a propah manneh!! Then, of course there are those Aussies and Kiwis somewhere down at the end of the world... Anyway, let’s take a look at some of the incongruities...

This is a topic which has been touched before but lately, I have been thinking more about it… especially late at night when sleep is, at times, difficult to come by. Those who know me will attest to the fact that I am willing to accept any view ( albeit some a little more comfortably than others ), including those that are contrary to mine, as long as they come served on a platter of thought out arguments… even if they are wrong… There was a time, during my upbringing, when I was told often that different was not good… Even when we, my sister and I, were the product of a broken marriage which in that place and time, was as different from mainstream as could get. I used to question these innuendos ( didn’t know what the word meant then… ) by simply asking “Why?” Yet, there were few who had an answer and fewer those who were willing to give it. Those were times when children were to “be seen but nor heard”, much less importune adults with “silly” questions. Only two people ...

To motivate someone is important to understand what it is that motivates that person… Redundant? Perhaps so… on the other hand, not so much. If someone comes to me and tries to get me to become involved in any issue or carry out a change in my habits, that person must be able to present it in such a way that it becomes attractive to me and to my own interests. If not, then my attention will be short lived. During the years I spent giving seminars, there was always a dose of motivation built into them. Sales people are constantly in need of personal motivation, this is an intrinsic part of the personal make up. The following story, somewhat shortened for the purpose of space, was a part of many such presentations. There was, somewhere and somewhen, a small village on the shores of a paradisiacal island… this was a beautiful, warm piece of land, under sunny skies most of the times and a nice, very comfortable breeze day and night. People came to this out of the way island to en...

“There are three basic rules to write a novel… it is just that no one knows what they are ”  Somerset Maugham. I guess this could be applicable to any kind of writing. There are no rules as to what it is that makes an interesting or well written piece; it is just what comes out when one sits in front of the empty digital page and, hopefully, there is someone out there who will enjoy the end result. There are no rules to be followed, as far as I know. Well, yeah... in truth there are many and these are put there by pundits who try to keep the language pure and well in order; then there are those of us who simply write for the joy of it and don’t really pay too much mind to what these old stooges say. Imagine, how could I bring to life someone like my dear, dear friend Cheito, if “ I cudnt ben’ the ruls’ to ryt laik he toks’ ” He’s a good man, but certainly no Shakespeare. He embodies the truth of a great number of people who came to this country and simply try to make ...

Looking back… as you grew up, have you been able to fulfill (any) (some) of your childhood dreams? An early summer morning in a warm, breezy bay town, in the south center of Cuba . A seven year old, getting ready to go off to swimming practices, stares up into the bright blue sky and dreams about the day he is an older version of his present self, and has graduated from medical school, opening an office in this very town, where he and his family have lived for the better part of 4 generations. The day was a good, lazy day for exploring around town after swimming practices so the boy opted to go to the club in his bike, instead of the usual bus ride. The ride would be a long one, so he left a little earlier than usual. Riding along, he crossed the center of the town park in a diagonal line, mentally saying hi to the statues which were meant to remind all about those who were responsible for liberating the country from the Spaniards… as he weaved around them trying hard not to ...

Every time I sit in front of the empty computer screen, I hope to be able to write a meaningful piece… something that will make an impact on whoever is the reader, to reach that one person who will benefit from having taken the time to stop, smell the roses… and read these posts . Somehow, it is my belief this has not happened yet. The posts keep coming out like practice runs ( almost 300 by now ) and, once in a great while, something actually comes out that is closer to that ideal than other pieces… hope rekindles anew and efforts are redoubled… to no avail.  Friends and readers I have not personally met  let me know -via email- how much they have enjoyed the posts; total readings have crept past the mark of 5,000 and we keep on keeping on, hoping to yet be able to actually find that elusive piece which will leave its mark on a special day. Much has happened over these past few weeks. It seems that every day –make that every hour- that passes brings on new challenge...

We live in a universe of needs and wants; these often define our lives and their interactions are more complex than meets the eye. Yesterday, during a late ESL class ( funny, how so very often what happens in those shows up in these… ) that we veered away from the established class guidelines ( you know, verbs and all that ) and we started to talk about life. In English, of course. As mentioned elsewhere in these entries, the folk who come to these classes are adults; people who truly must learn the language spoken in this country, so as to open up new doors and possibilities. Often, there come up the excuses about why “we could not do the homework”, etc… children, lack of time, long hours of work, tiredness at the end of the day… and all the usual. No, I do not make light fun of this; they are truly hard working Americans who happen to speak little or no English, and are trying to do something about this lack. So, after the rounds of excuses, I decided to get away from t...