From my bus ride home… “This is how you become REAL invisible…you do this (approx. five year old boy makes whacking-chopping motions with each forearm) then one arm turns yellow, one turns blue, and then it happens! But, only if you are wearing your tight pants, like in ballet.” THAT explains why it’s never worked…

Questions from RevGals… As this vivid season begins, tell us five favorite things about fall: 1) A fragrance — nuts roasting in street vendor carts; loamy earth; chili on the stove; Constant Comment tea (childhood memory). 2) A color– the heart of fire 3) An item of clothing — a rose plaid flannel/fleece shirt jacket–well…

I had another interesting language experience the other night while talking on the computer with someone in Mexico. My friend made reference to knowing that something would happen in el momento adecuado. This made perfect sense to me. The adequate moment—which wasn’t adequate exactly, but rather appropriate–the moment that was sufficiently the right moment for…

I find myself in a funny position right now. Well, actually, both feet are on the rung of the chair and my hands are resting on the keyboard…so it isn’t the physical position that is funny, but rather the mental one. I had one of those GREAT teaching days today that absolutely revs me up…

…there came Oral Interpretation in college. It was there I learned how to translate my own personal experiences into a format that was both safe for me and engaging for others. I began by converting several actual incidents into monologues (the regularly occurring “Don’t be Boring for ten minutes” exercise) and realized that others would…

I recently described the process of going back to school as a teacher as one of going from around 30 mph to driving on the Autobahn when all you did was turn a corner. My students return tomorrow…there will be the thumping of backpacks, giggling, hugging, stamping up the stairs, whispers, welcomes, locker clanging, general…

I wrote this for a friend who earlier today sent me an email that included a wish for a special map. She lost the love of her life tragically a little over a year ago. All day long in moments fleeting I kept coming back to the idea of cartography and internal geography…I knew I…

Three weeks ago, I received a letter from my father. Two weeks ago, I received another letter from him. Two days ago, a third note arrived. The content is not what is important…more so, my reaction. Sometimes at a certain age or time people stop, look in the mirror, and with shudders of recognition pronounce…