Thoughts from home during my morning coffee
We were supposed to be just four more days away from the end of Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ). Maybe the extension of 15 more days is for the better.
Today, on a Sunday, I relive my old habit of sleeping in early, waking up early, getting myself a fresh cup of black coffee and reading my book in silence. For a while, the world seems “right” again.
I want to learn Breton. Breton is a curious celtic language spoken in the north-western part of France. I want to learn languages so archaic and rarely spoken yet descriptive of how life was from centuries ago. No, not Latin or Greek. I believe they still live on somehow with our modern and widely spoken languages. I saw that there are some institutions in the French capital that would give me access to Breton lessons. Let this post be a reminder that I should one day make this come true.
Who am I kidding? I can’t even progress in Lithuanian (Spanish, Korean, Italian, Portuguese…), if I’m being hard (or honest) on myself, which I shouldn’t.
Yesterday, I finished Agatha Christie’s Death in the Clouds, a Hercules Poirot murder series, in Lithuanian. Not completely, it was written in both English and Lithuanian. I picked up some new words. It was also satisfying to know I am able to manage a few lines without referring to its English translation.
I also want to get back into learning in Esperanto. What for? I don’t know, I just feel like it’s handy to know a language few people understand. How is that helpful? “Handy” is not probably the best word. Amusing. I find it amusing to be able to speak a certain language that makes people go “what’s that?”.
Some more random thoughts from Sunday morning at home: books have always given me an impression of how “sad” and “unfortunate” those people are who seem to have potential to excel but “has not written a single account of his genius”. So, am I or will I be one of those sad, unfortunate people who will probably never get into acceptable, formal writing her sagacity (declaring this without being apologetic). Aren’t all of us brilliant in some sort of way? Why do we have to formally write about it to have some sort of validation?
People really do fear uncertainty. How about now?
Speaking of books, I have read 16 books since the start of the year. My goal is to read 30 for the entire year. I’m off to a good start. I’m confident that I’ll be able to reach my goal for the first time I’ve set myself a reading challenge.
Other than read books, I have also been determined to launch free language lessons on the site. That has currently been put on hold because of burn out. I will resume as soon as I finish attending to lessons I am paid for to prepare (aka University classes).
I also am managing a Youtube channel with some videos that are able to capture some left over splash of creativity. It’s so frustrating not being able to execute what I have envisioned in my head because of my lack of skills. I have ideas on which videos I can still work on but there’s so much going on in my head, so much I also still want to do. But it’s there, I’ll get to it. I’m sure. Maybe in a few years. I do hope it won’t take that long...again.
I’ve also started to offer pre-recorded lectures to my students again. There are a few students willing to continue their studies without the pressure of obtaining a grade. A colleague once told me that for as long as there’s a single student who is willing to learn, we should continue doing our craft. And so, even if it entails a gargantuan task to prepare an online lecture of a language course, I still choose to do it. I am having fun. I like how this is another outlet to be creative and explore different styles, ways and methods.
The next “big” project is to translate this blog in French to revive that dwindling part of this cyberspace.
That’s it for my Sunday, quiet morning, and I guess, for the past 30+ days. Now let me go back to my coffee and French book.
THOUGHTS FROM…
Thoughts from… is a blog series I attempt to come up with in order to place my noisy, rowdy, raw, uncensored, unapologetic thoughts during the worldwide community confinement brought about by the alarming concern of the propagation of CoVid-19. It’s a letter I intend to address my future self for when hard(er) times hit life hereafter. If I’m not yet dead by then.