Carpe Diem!

Moment

2008-09-14T04:23:00.018-03:00

A crack in the sky lets me relive again, after all this time. New companions in my endless search for fulfillment disclose my intentions. Cryptic thoughts let me flow through memories of a not-so-distant past, gaining momentum by the second...

This is a new beginning. A different place to share life experiences, retaining my old feelings of joy, enriching my soul with new human dewdrops, and hearing the falling of a tree branch from a forest I still cannot locate.

After this year away, I hope to come back here at times, to pour some parts of my soul. New endeavours have kept me apart from sharing my learning-teaching experiences, but I believe I will be able to share new insights with you. You know, the cup never gets filled!!!

- * -

Lapses of time never fail to show

how frail we are,

how dim our connection with love

can become.

But at the same time,

they let us in,

they help rebuild our forgotten layers.

- * -

Rediscover moments,

Regain consciousness,

Redesign horizons,

with Renewed Hope.

- * -

Playground

2007-07-19T15:26:00.001-03:00

I'd like to be

part of the cure,

and part of the disease

that cures you.

Life tells us

Death is only the windowsill of Light,

and Suffering is only the disappearing trail of Enlightenment.

Life,

filling all the recesses from where disenchantment oozes,

destroys unwanted misdemeanors,

and always delays stillness.

As a movement,

you always belong.

As a clear night

you show the lights around us.

As snow

you lead us to sheer simplicity.

And as rain,

you tell us to move through to......

You.

Beauty is a Side-effect......

2007-05-14T09:46:00.000-03:00

Hi, Folks!!! Every time I feel compelled to write, there seems to be a huge reason to let words drop through this humble blog 'o' mine. And this time is no exception.

Having attended yet another seminar (the LCB Series' first one, "Writing for Authentic Audiences", led by one of my mentors, Mrs. Gladys Baya), a few reflections are in order: this one was heavily attended -25, 30 people in all?-, taking into account the earliness of the hour (9:30 on a coldish Saturday). The warmth of the well-known atmosphere struck me right from the beginning. I stepped once again on the soft, cherished wood floors, only to find dear faces, greeting me into that irregular-shaped classroom.

The seminar went smoothly, and at a given time something strongly drew my attention: a poem on a wall, written by an 11-year-old boy (*), and a verse running "....Beauty is a side-effect everyone has". Then my heart skipped a beat: I suddenly remembered a Cyndi Lauper song, "True Colors", about human nature, and how deceiving can be to draw shallow portraits of people based only on looks......as I started to ponder on this, another flash of humbling light struck, making me recall some commercials on TV regarding 'not so beautiful' people advertising a soap brand. All this became a sweet remainder of how children can always bring us down to earth. The title phrase, resourceful in simplicity, freshly gets us rid of unwanted perfection, strips us from 'Maya' -the Hindu word for illusion-, and helps us delve deep beyond flesh and bone.......so,

Hark!

Children play

just as grownups do

on the thin ice of Life.

and Different is just a word

uttered in places unkind,

yet True Colors soar

when we all become blind.

(*) You can find the complete poem -and some more enlightenting ones- in : http://www.techlearning.com/story/showArticle.php?articleID=163105484

Round The Fire

2007-04-23T14:07:00.000-03:00

Just a thought after attending the 'Reading And Language Arts Workshop' last Saturday

~ ~ ~

Storytelling is

not

a compound word,

an eleven-letter thought expression.

Just a gathering of Souls

sharing heat

and, in

the spur of the moment,

Belong..........

Life is peachy!

2007-03-29T08:45:00.000-03:00

Hi, dewdrops all! This is me again, still rebirthing.......After having taken Cambridge's TKT exam, I feel stamina-stuffed again (though it's difficult for me to cope with March-April's wet climate)

This year, and the following, seem promising to me. I've just found a place -or several places- in the Liceo Cultural Británico: I've been given adolescent and adult courses there, and I'm sort of busy, but the 'peachiness' of life is largely overwhelming that initial 'quicksand stepping' feeling when assuming responsibility for groups of people. As classes pass by, there is also a fullness which has taken over me: the permanent feedback with my students, the idyllic state of bliss which stays after each and every class I give, the help that comes from everywhere, my colleagues' silent understanding and support, make me remember my own adolescent years......promising, filled with hope. And I do hope this fullness to last.

And, this state I'm in has taken me to greater heights......my intention to resume my Teacher Training formal studies has taken shape. After having faced difficult times which led me to abandon those studies last year, the dust now is being settled, and the intention has become tangible.......so,now, Teacher Trainers Beware! Next year I'm coming back with a vengeance!!!

Rebirth

2007-03-05T09:24:00.000-03:00

Hello again! After this summer recess, in which I decided to get away from it all, I'm just starting to rev up to face the future ahead. Good and bad teaching experiences I had, none of which I resent, and (almost) plenty of new ideas to follow the path I started a few years ago.

I'm now about to take Cambridge's TKT Module One exam, after absorbing all knowledge in my brief English Teacher Training Course experience, and looking forward to let my roster of private students grow.

It takes great pains,

a lot of stamina,

and a great deal of perseverance.......

It takes a true heart,

also false steps,

and quite a bit of courage..........

It takes loving surroundings,

harmonised roots,

and some determination.........

......to go solo flying, but

first,

take a deep breath before the plunge,

betray the roots of evil that sprout everywhere,

make amends, and

Soar Away!!

Girlie Friend

2006-11-12T12:34:00.000-03:00

Cleo (May 1993 - November 2006)

With bitter tears in my eyes,

this is just to keep her in my heart,

my little beloved teenage girl!

Windmill of Life

2006-10-22T01:04:00.000-03:00

As the windmill labouriously revolves behind these quasi-teenagers, so does my life. It has taken very long for me to write here again, as I'm expanding my English learning-teaching and Irish music performing. Unfortunately I had to quit (just for the moment) my formal studies, as the number of students in my agenda keeps growing, and my life grows with each student looming ahead in my horizon.

Anyway, I'm quite sure there will be plenty of wonderous stories to share with my "dewdrops on the net" in the near future.

I find, with every breath I take, as the sun makes its way through its heavenly daily errands,

that those dewdrops can't evaporate, and, yes, Mary Dear, with every comment my childlike amazement grows........

The words I try to utter here are those from the heart, those that indelibly link myself with each and every one of you, those that know of no boundaries or languages.

I deem I have finally found a way to express my gratitude to all living beings, to give something in return for the wonderful life I'm living now, and to try and join the heartbeats in each and every net-sustainers with my own, just to finally sing the same song.

O Children-at-Heart, I bow to you all in sheer loveliness!

Global Warmth

2006-07-19T15:45:00.000-03:00

Just as the dust is clearing after my Teacher Training College's mid-term exams, I'm beginning to fully appreciate the many comments on this humble blog o' mine......Sometimes the humid air makes it difficult to see, sometimes the thunder and lightning of frantic neuronal activity blurs the whole picture......sometimes the rain on our hearts make us sad, but when we shake the weather off, the essence shows and prevails.

What I just want to utter here is a song of praise, to express a sense of belonging to a global warmth, which is the LwC group. There have been (many) times when I felt at a loss, when emptiness crept from everywhere, but, soon after that, those little lights of hope, those little warriors which make up my soul, defied the undefiable, their secret voices oozing out of every cell of my body and shouting "Hope remains!"

Be sure, my friends, that I'll be there,
Be certain, life-givers, that I'll stay,
Little lights, everyone, everywhere,
which help to make my way!

Thank you all, my dear dewdrops on the net!

Stormy Weather

2006-07-16T09:57:00.000-03:00

I thought of this old song beautifully performed by Frank Sinatra to talk about this. After having been away from the blog for over a month, there are some things I need to write about.
I've had quite a ride at the LCB. There have been some examinations and plenty of assignments to do, but mostly I've had lots of fun. I've even found myself trying to help other people with their difficulties. I mention this because it's very difficult nowadays to find people available to help. This may seem ironic, but people nowadays are quite 'busy' to help others. I don't really know if this is an excuse to remain detached or what, but I don't feel like getting detached myself. I've had lots of self-satisfaction in helping others.

On other matters, and also related with the title........is there any difference as regards good and bad emotions?. Just like the weather, emotions are everchanging, but I don't think there is such a thing as "good" and "bad" emotions, just like "good" and "bad" weather. Do you think, dear reader, that stormy weather is bad for crop fields?. What's really "bad" about rain? I've found many people who talks about this way, just as with emotions.
I strongly think that there are emotions, regardless of the quality. Who am I to judge (this is what we do when qualifying) other's emotions? It is true that emotions can do us much harm......but as the Chinese say, you don't have to be there to receive them, if you know they would do you harm!
Anyway, emotions make us do funny things, such as judging peers' performances (I've just seen it an awful lot of it at the LCB), playing people down when someone claims to have more skills than others (again, seen a lot......), and some passiveness as regards letting this happen (I don't claim to be a "truth-holder", but there are some limits on passiveness).

I do hope that all this happens because we are going through chaotic times, that we are treading unknown paths. These are just ramblings from a non-judgmental person, but I'm beginning to get worried about intolerance and passiveness.
PS: I just did this quiz and got this result. Do it and have fun Knowing Thyself!!!

Take the quiz at dicepool.com

Teaching Learning or Learning Teaching?

2006-06-10T19:31:00.000-03:00

This seems to be an abstruse question. It might be highly philosophical. Would it be too soon to try and question myself this?
After eagerly having listened to classmates and teachers at LCB this week, this question seems to be trying to eat me alive. Am I supposed to learn how to teach, as a skill to make a living, and just stop there? If so, I believe this could be the end of my career to me. And, on the other hand, am I supposed to be taught how to learn, as a way to get information, and remain self-centered and self-satisfied with my own knowledge? Again, if so, I also believe this could be the end of my career to me.
So, what would happen if I tried to combine those two paths? What would the intersection be? The light bulb inside my head is flickering! A Learning Teacher AND a Teaching Learner would be a very nice combination.........this would transform every classroom into a jam session, as in music, in which social interaction would be the trend!
We are human (at least most of which can read these ramblings), we are gregarious in nature, so, why not apply that gregariousness into learning and teaching? At the very least, that combination will save me from being brain-dead.....Or will it?

----

Photo: A Rodent Successfully Using Lateral Thinking.

Backs Against the Wall?

2006-06-05T10:26:00.000-03:00

Sometimes I feel blessed. Blessed to be born at a meeting point of two millennia.

I visited "Museo de las Escuelas" last friday. And afterwards, I began hearing strange noises. Of paper rustling, of nervous feet dragging down to old classrooms filled with a chalk dust atmosphere, of girls and boys' voices, apparently happy, eager to be in there.

Mercifully enough, our minds hide dark memories of mindless drills given for punishment, to defend our innocence up to the moment we are living. And fortunately, I still do not hear the sound of the meat-mashing machine.

I now feel most grateful to have been there. To know which path I do not want to re-tread. And I feel grateful that most of my classmates did not have to undergo that kind of brainwashing in the sixties. That's what the museum is useful for: cherishing evolution, enshrining human development, doing away with the wall we grown-ups have still to deal with every day. The flashbacks you most probably have when visiting the "museo" are a permanent reminder that true education was absent there and then.

English Lab Hamster

2006-05-25T17:54:00.000-03:00

It is not that I am trying to follow the steps of Skinner's experiments*, but this could be a very good example of the "teething troubles" one can face at an early stage of a career.

The above photo has become a snapshot on my family album. He -I can tell you it's a 'he'- seems to be very interested in poring over some of the sources from which I try to make sense of English language. And, mind-boggling enough, he is sitting on a "Psychology for Language Teachers" handbook! Could this be a message from the animal Kingdom, or even a writing on the wall? Should you, dear reader, have some thoughts about it, please let me know!

* For more on Skinner's experiment, see:

http://www.juliantrubin.com/bigten/skinnerbox.html

Photo acknowledgements: Thanks to my wife, who first saw him there, and to the physically articulate rodent for posing.

I 'Will' Follow

2006-05-20T11:24:00.000-03:00

I've seen those faces before......I've seen the anguish in those souls, those bleeding hearts. And I've been there.
The dream, obscured by infectious ramblings about the future, sorely delayed time and time again. And then I remembered....
English language seems to have no such thing as 'future tense'. It has to force the future by invoking 'modality'. In other words, it has to have the force of 'will'. So, who am I to tell you about the future?. No one knows what it would bring, unless one might conjure up a lasting enchantment to travel forward in time. And I deem that could only be done by force of will.
Meanwhile, dear mates, here we are, still alive after the mini-tests we have just had in the LCB classroom. And, as nothing lasts forever, what could possibly be the use of worrying further on? I'm not now praising contentment, I'm not telling you just to go with the flow. Just invoke that force of will inside to counterspell anxiety, to look at the whole picture, and enjoy the only 'tense' we've got: The Simple Present.

Camels and Chamaeleons

2006-05-15T14:46:00.000-03:00

Would you like some Earl Grey tea, no sugar, no milk, in the middle of the Sahara desert? Would you like to behold the umpteenth version of an albino scorpion just coming out of the desert sand near Hamunaptra, Egypt?
And would you like to see a reptile disappear before your eyes when looking at a tree in an Amazonas rainforest?
Well, these raptures seem to be the ramblings of a 48-year-old diseased mind.* But, rather, in the first two cases, only a camel could help fulfill those wildest dreams. And what other marvelous magician could perform such a mind-boggling act, than a chamaeleon?
In animal kingdom, can you, dear reader, think of any two-legged mammal which may impersonate the traits those two wonderous creatures have?.............(rumble)..............Voilá! There´s the Teacher!!
Teachers, as camels, have the endurance to go through the most hostile environment with a reassuring smile, and, as a chamaeleon, they can become best wizards and jugglers in the world, leaving a river of amazed faces behind, and still, be part of the chaos.
Endurance and versatility. One for keeping a teacher whole, and the other to make him /her be a Pandora's Box to stir our curiosity and hunger to learn. Then, by integrating those two features, teachers make us use our ears, our eyes, ourselves, our hearts and our undivided attention.........to Listen.

*Happy Birthday to me......why not?

Birthright

2006-05-12T15:47:00.000-03:00

Being a child is not easy. I read somewhere that children are "the human dustbins of recycled knowledge". Shocked as I was when pondering on those words, I thought, if this be true, children would, as they undergo the process of digesting recycled leftovers, begin the process of losing their innocence.

Sometimes innocence is lost by exposure to peer's "wisdom". Who wasn't told of "adult secrets" blurred by misconceptions which later led to adult trauma? Who did not meet insensitive and abusive adults, dreadful offsprings of early mistreatment?

Nevertheless, the mechanism of society seems to be built on the premise of making everyone lose innocence. As our caregivers "innocently" lead us to deal with the environment, they imbue us with their failures, their resentment and their anger.

But where does that anger come from? Evidently from their own loss of innocence. Does it sound familiar to you, my dear reader? All the "do's" and "dont's", all the "-isms" carefully nurtured and taught through all of our lives, are always lurking inside to take over at any given moment. Those obscure precepts leave us as beggarly ghosts, waiting to live other people's lives.

So, not feeling comfortable with that definition, and always longing for answers, I now resort to education. The Chilean biologist Humberto Maturana said: "Only Education defeats poverty". Education surely lead us to leave that "beggarly state", make us retrace our footsteps, unlearn cynicism, just to rightfully regain innocence, to rightfully become children again.

Everlasting, Impregnable, Omnipresent Spirit,

Bless them Teachers all,

Loving Lifegivers, poverty Defeaters!

Space-Time Continuum

2006-05-08T14:52:00.000-03:00

In space, there are no boundaries. In time, there is continuum.
Space, in the LCB, is plentiful. Not only to express myself, but also to hear the resounding echoes of walls and corridors, telling me to continue. And strong enough to withstand my inquiries and, to some extent, my circumstances.
And Time, also in the LCB, is an enormous dynamic body to withstand my feelings, my secret wishes, and my love.

That room, in which I devote myself to succeed in social communication (I deeply thank my mates for that), and in which I leave many cells of my body and receive both knowledge and affectionate gestures (I deeply thank all teachers and staff!), has the shape of a nest: no sharp corners, no dark sarcasm.....but neverending energy currents which sweep away my fears in this path I gleefully have embarked. I can hardly express my gratitude to all the people commenting -or not- on this little place of mine. The best way to let you know how I feel is just being with you all, every day I spend with or without you in the flesh.

.....our reason to be here.

2006-05-06T18:17:00.000-03:00

One can see humbleness in Nature. When I see the six hamsters I keep at home as pets, I can see humbleness. When I look at a blade of grass swinging and swaying in the wind, I can see humbleness.

A very good exercise on it is to attend a seminar. I've just come back from the APIBA seminar at Lenguas Vivas, and the newness of it all brought back that not so common feeling. I highly enjoyed it, saw people come and go, some proud and tall, some stooping low at knowledge, some others filled their hands with catalogues and brochures, but most with that reassuring look of solidarity. I found many people eager to talk (thanks to this, -as soon as I know when and where-, I'll embark myself in an NLP workshop), all very helping people. The dissertants were all very enthusiastic, to the point that I felt tempted to jump at every single task they proposed but, to keep myself true to my newfound beloved vocation, I refocused on just listening and learning.

And now I'm waiting here for you....my reason to be here. And after a bit of waiting, the feedback almost overwhelmed me. I boldly went to read the comments on my previous posts, and the seed of humbleness sprouted here and there. I feel the urge to tell all of you that you are, no more and no less, the reason I'm here.........

Julia and Adriana: YOU both almost left me speechless!!!! Many Thanks!

Lightning Up!

2006-05-05T20:47:00.000-03:00

Goooooood Day everyone!!!!
This is exam time at the LCB Teacher Training college.......a challenging feat! I now usually find myself having some skirmishes with photocopies, books, and annotations about all the juicy subjects that all teachers there kindly try to share with us. Ahead lies some remaining exams, and ahead I will follow.
I don't seem to have trouble with time as yet. I have even enrolled in a seminar to take place tomorrow at Lenguas Vivas, and plan to attend the remaining ones (yes, even that seminar which our TofE and Developmental Psychology teacher -Dearest Gladys- is giving in some months!).
Dear friends, challenges are looming ahead, and I feel there is no time for caution now, it is time for daring! Hope this light of mine be contageous, just as an encouraging virus..........

Note: a million thanks to Gladys for her commentary on 'Fledglings', which inspired me to write this. And to all fellow students at LCB for making my staying there much happier!

Sowing the Seeds

2006-04-28T17:14:00.000-03:00

Today I've just had what some people would call 'a reassuring experience'. As a private English teacher for some years now, I've had some personal unsureties about how to tackle the job, as I've had no specialised tuition. I seem to have a good command of the language (people seem to understand me as I speak!) but I 'officially' lack what may be called 'pedagogic expertise'.
As soon as I finished an assignment for Theory of Education at the LCB about Andragogy theory* a few hours ago, I just found -to my surprise- that I've been intuitively applying the five key assumptions of the theory since I began teaching! I think I may have had teachers who used that approach, and I may well have unconsciously 'modeled' them........
There are now two students of mine, both adults at elementary level, which are very enthusiastic about English language, and I haven't realised until now that it may well be thanks to the 'andragogic' approach. As you may have noticed, my passion flows through everything I do, and this 'discovery' comes only to enrich me.

* For more on Andragogy theory, click on the link: http://www.learningandteaching.info/learning/knowlesa.htm

Fledglings

2006-04-27T17:18:00.000-03:00

When I was young, one of the things my elders told me was 'always be grateful'. So, here´s to a lovely lady whose commentary I herewith hyperlink to:

Pay It Forward

As regards the title, if you, dear reader, happen to someday meet me in the flesh, I resemble more to a "Flying Hagrid" than a fledgling bird just out of its nest. But that's the way I'm feeling now: not exactly light as a feather, but more like a 'bird of a feather', just spreading its wings to experience this neverending task of teaching.

The expressions 'light as a feather' and 'bird of a feather' courtesy of my former teachers.

Agustín: many thanks for your comments. I'll keep sharing "wisdom" as you keep sharing your friendship. Cheers!!!

Sense........plus Sensitivity

2006-04-24T14:06:00.000-03:00

After having passed this first month at LCB -just a little bit over a month!! phew.....what a content-filled one!!-, trying to make and enjoy new friendships, which I'm sure will become colleagues in the years to come, I am just beginning to feel fully submerged into subtleties which seem to deepen by the hour. Someone out there would think I am rushing things, or that I am getting in muddy waters, but again, I feel there is an underlying sense of connection, of integrity that I want to share.
From discovering mountains in the Highlands of Scotland, to running half-naked through phonetic symbols, from dissecting clauses to plunging into innatism, from parading aspects of language to overwhelming beauty of teaching and learning, there is a heartbeat under my feet that is keeping my passion alive. Share yours with me.

.....I crave for Sense, to endure challenges to come........and crave for Sensitivity to recognise and accept the answers that lie ahead.

Note: 20 years after Chernobyl, these two words grow up in meaning to become blinding lights all over us. Remember Chernobyl. Remember Life.

.....and make your lives extraordinary!

2006-04-22T13:07:00.000-03:00

This is the beginning of a number of posts about my personal views regarding English language. One of the things I bumped myself into was finding the time to do research work, apart from keeping up with homework at the Liceo Cultural Británico, where I'm now trying to make my way to become a teacher.
Pondering on a realistic way to find extra time, first I tried to go symbolic-wise. As everyone may have noticed, time is a precious and elusive convention which not everyone has the luxury of wasting. And that elusiveness made me want to search first in abstract terms. Then, I remembered a picture I found during a certain course I took some 20 years ago at the Cultural Inglesa 1a. de Buenos Aires. The picture is Magritte's "Time Transfixed", rendered here. It appeared in a unit of a certain student book I don't remember now, but to me it reflects now the fact that a badly needed period of time may be hidden in the most unusual place. Notice that the locomotive has even a shadow, which may convey the idea of "real time" (computer jargon!). The only thing one may need is the unfaltering will to keep searching for it.