I also collect books. Today I bought a book about Theodore Herzl in Yiddish. That, however, is irrelevant.
Please, enjoy this quote-
| 'Why did you do all this for me?' he asked. 'I don't deserve it. I've never done anything for you.' 'You have been my friend', replied Charlotte. 'That in itself is a tremendous thing.' From 'Charlotte's Web' Written by E. B. White | |
I tutor a six year-old in conversational Hebrew about twice a week. We've been going slow, learning body parts, numbers, colors, letters, whathaveyou. A few weeks ago I introduced the verbs "to eat" and "to drink." I used as examples words that she would recognize from English--- "shokolad," "tayh," "kola," etc. We do a little review and more examples and conversation every week.
Today she says to me, "Morah Rebecca, you sure do like shokolad and kola."
True, definitely true.
In other worlds, I graduate college in less than a month.
"Were it not for the Torah, which is my delight, and matters of speculation in which I forget my grief, I would have perished in my affliction."
this is an email my five-year old cousin Sean sent me on my brother's iPhone this weekend while sitting on his lap, across the table from me:
fbhgsjytefbd redslcxdvbrdfvcsdftrjfrfbvgtguhfhlgddbguffyhhkhju
q
dgftffffffffffdffdddgfhcvvvvbhfjvcgffftrrtfghgghhvgbbjtjkgyg frdggv
hyytfgvhufchhixkhnmij
Sent from my iPhone
1.
Today (tonight) on the 61C there was just an ordinary girl, backpack, hat, blond hair, sitting in the front vertical row behind the driver. she was just an ordinary girl, and then she got off the bus at forbes-craig, crossed the street while the bus was stopped at the light, and ran* into the arms of a man standing in front of kiva han, a quick kiss and a caring hug, and suddenly she wasn't an ordinary girl anymore...she was a COUPLE! it seems to be a glorious thing.**
2.
my body isn't fitting me so well today. meaning, my fingers can't seem to fit well next to each other, the knuckles constantly fighting for air or space or whatever it is knuckles fight for, and my feet haven't been able to rest comfortably anywhere for more than five minutes since I got out of bed this morning.
3.
PURIM!
*ok, she didn't run, but as if
**just a lovely concept, not, dad, that I am pining away, weaving and ripping out my tapestry by day and night, while I bemoan my lack of couple-ness.
for every word I speak I feel two-thousand more.
________________
Piglet sidled up to Pooh from behind.
"Pooh!" he whispered.
"Yes, Piglet?'"
"Nothing," said Piglet, taking Pooh's paw. "I just wanted to be sure of you."
---Clint Echols
There's this lady around my way
Who sees me like every other day
Who swears and screams a name
She says "Randy where you been?
I remember you were my best friend
Me and you was in it till the end
You was like a son to me back then
You were the son that I never had
I've been huntin' you down man
I'll let you know about my foolproof plan
We can get a crew like we once had
And run from town to town
We'll never ever be found
Say Randy how's that sound?
When I was down
You were always around, I'm so glad
That I finally found you"
Mistaken me
It seems like you've mistaken me
See you've mistaken me
It seems like you've mistaken me, taken me
Say lady if I seem a way
If my enthusiasm ain't the same
It's just that Randy ain't my name
But I tell you this most every day
There's nothing I can say
To change the way
You're feeling about me
Try but you refuse to hear
Even when I'm walking with my lady
You say "How you doing baby
I like your new girlfriend
You've always attracted them princesses"
I wish I could pretend
I pray you find your friend
And all she said in the end
Is "Randy where you been?"
[Mistaken I.D., Citizen Cope]
Ben, the love of Girl's life, goes for the phone.
Girl escapes, ends up on lawn of soldiers & sailors facing imposing edifice
and imposing stalwart statue.
Girl traverses about the city, finding herself seated at the ultra-hipster vegetarian cafe/restaurant/hipster lounge the quiet storm in garfield, where things are almost too hipster to be comfortable.
not-so-hipster Girl is skeptical, until
she sees the lemon-lime cheesecake.
on the Next Day's Adventure, all part of the Grand Plan, Girl walks in sunny (sunny?!) pittsburgh weather around oakland, campus-ville.
the indoor-courtyard of Girl's biopsych class building, frick fine arts, reflects well,
but Girl and friend Phd-Prospect decide da 'burgh's gots alotta love tah offer, so they
engage in a game of chess at phipps botanical gardens, where the air is fresh (fresh!)
and flowers nicely scented.
blues make Girl sigh with contentedness,
while Phd-Prospect grins and bears it.
there are words all about-
the bench speaks: thank god for a garden be it ever so small
and Phd-Prospect journalizes Girl's camus quote from yesterday and charts out the next prolific tournament with haprolificim.
:thank god for the sunshine that comes flooding it all.
Girl agrees, and decides she wants to get married (in general) in a space like this (or at least enjoy such a space).
but, Girl reMarks, she has grown and learned that fairy tales are true only in books,
and sighs as she sees her gleaming white horse amidst a bed of flowers, but no daring Knight.
Girl sees ladies walking on water
and decides that she too can be a
WonderWoman.
There's a lot to say.
On the attack at the Mercaz HaRav Yeshiva in Jerusalem I feel so much my words tumble over each other and become wet with tears and broken with hearts and clenched with fists. In the end, I am sad and silent and lost.
What to write after this?
In high school we read The Stranger by Albert Camus. I liked it but then attempted to lessen my liking for it because suddenly everybody* else liked it too and when we entered college (and later, got facebook) everybody else listed it in their favorite books. Must get over my aversion to liking what I like but disliking when people I shouldn't think like the same do like the same. hm. Regardless. Today I was sent a quote by Camus. It's good-
If there is sin against life, it consists in hoping for another life and in eluding the implacable grandeur of this life.
