Monday, July 06, 2009

Lunes, Lunes

Their is a full moon tonight as I write this. It has been a long day and I am tired, but it is a good tired. I taught my first class at Universidad Catolica. It was different, and I mean exactly that: different.

Over the last couple of days we've noticed the same things that everyone who engages in foreign travel learns. There are things that are the same as home and things that are different and even the things that are the same are different. There is ketchup. That is the same. It is marketed by Hellman's. That is different. It tastes just a little different too. That is okay because if everything was the same we could just stay home.

Jean, mi esposa, and I took a walk today. Hardly any of the plants we saw are the same as we have at home. There are some that look familiar but would look more at home in flower pots than standing alone as a tree as they are doing here. I did see mother-in-law's tongue, vast quantities of it in fact.

An then there are the palm trees and the orange trees and the fruit trees for which there is no word in English.

But back to my class. They are intelligent, nice, polite, and have a great deal of affection for one another. I am exhausted. They will be a challenge for me, but I know they will learn. I know they care.

My first Monday is over and the moon is full. Lunes, lunes.

5 comments:

Susan said...

It was always a surprise for me to see in England what we call in the midwest "butterfly bushes" that were 12-15 ft high and more like maple trees -- growing more like our catalpas do on corner lots, vacant lots, scrubby corners, coming up from cracks in the cement and without the least bit of tender loving care. Hearty souls. Attuned, and thriving, in a clime unlike our own... ;-)

Unknown said...
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Unknown said...

One day down and 14 more to go! Everyone tells me that this is some of the most challenging teaching they have every done. I do not know if it is weariness from travel and not being in familiar surroundings, if it is cultural or what the reason is. I hope you will share your insights with future professors in the program.
How are the girls? I am anxious to hear how about their experiences.

Bobby Winters said...

Part of the challenge is having been plucked into one system and plopped into another. It was my good fortune to talk to others who'd been down here before me.

Another part is the nature of having to teach three hours straight. This is not easy even with different classes. With the same class, the students get tired of the same teacher. We take breaks, and that helps some.

Janet said...

Watch out for that mother-in-laws tongue. Supposed to be poison, at least to cats and dogs.