Finnegans Wake

Jennie Lynn's performance of Finnegans Wake was absolutely amazing andthen some- nothing less than that! I was in absolute awe and realized once she had sat down that I don't know for sure that I even took a breath while she was standing in front of the class. It was so peaceful, yet as Dr. Sexson said, filled with sadness. Her voice reflected all of this so well. It came to me then that this is what performance is, this is what education should be! This performance was so inspiring! I am honored to be in a class in which someone can stand up and convey so many emotions in such a short amount of time. I also was amazed at how much easier it was to pay close attention to the words and pick out certain phrases that I felt I could understand. I was able to enjoy finnegans wake rather than become overwhelmed by Joyce's complexity. I conclude that perhaps stories are best understood, appreciated and enjoyed orally, at least for me.

"Brick walls are there for a reason"

When Dr. Sexson asked us the question, "What book could you not put down?", I was immediately tuned into my thoughts. Many books ran through my head, but one specific stayed in the back of my mind the entire time. Randy Pausch's The Last Lecture is perhaps the most touching and inspiring piece of work I have laid hands on. Suffering from pancreatic cancer, Pausch delivered a last lecture meant for his children to listen and learn from after his death. I read this book in one sitting. While it is a short, quick read, it is also most importantly a book that I was able to derive many important and truly life changing points from. So often, I lose myself in the stresses of college and general life downs when I should really be focusing on the positive parts. The worst thing anyone could ever hear is that they are a negative person. It is so easy to forget that life is a gift, every moment good and bad is an experience and some good can be taken out of any moment. I posted some quotes below from The Last Lecture that stand out and are some of my favorites. Though he was suffering from a life threatening illness his book reflects humor and joy in life. While I enjoy reading nearly anything, I remember the books that I can take life lessons from and those that inspire me. Happiness is truly the most important thing to me in life and sometimes it takes a piece of work like Pausch's or Dr. Seuss's Have I ever told you how lucky you are?, or Hermann Hesse's Siddhartha. All books that inspire me to do my best, do what I love and be happy doing whatever it is I do.

The Last Lecture:
"The brick walls are there to show how badly we want something"
"Show gratitude. Gratitude is a simple but powerful thing"
"Never lose the child-like wonder, It's just too important"
"Better to fail spectacularly than do something mediocre"

The Cookie- what is an epiphany and what does it feel like?

I went to Sola this week and read through a few of the poems or handouts Dr. Sexson has listed on the syllabus. I had a difficult time working through The Windhover. I don't even know if we were supposed to read this yet, needless to say no epiphany came to me when reading it. I also read Proust's "The Cookie". While this excerpt is barely over 2 pages long, it took me quite a long time to read through. I was not distracted at all, except by my thoughts of this reading. I re-read each paragraph at least 3 times, each time picking up on something new or loving what I had already highlighted even more. Perhaps I should continue on with this until we discuss the cookie more in depth in class...I am so anxious to continue on though...I will just wait I guess. But I will say that their are "ahh" moments all over in this reading and Proust captures the definition of epiphany better than anyone else I have come across thus far.

Some would think that because an epiphany is a thought, perhaps you can't feel it, but you can! Epiphanies send a tingle through your body- a chill so enthralling that your mind becomes almost frozen for a moment. Epiphanies combine all the senses I believe in some way though we are not able to remember exactly or perhaps even experience that same feeling through each sense ever again.

Life re-visited as an English Major

I just wrote an entire blog re-visiting my life as an english major and realized I need to take a much closer look at my education as a whole and the great life events that shaped it. Where do I begin? Some would say, well duh start at the beginning! It's really not the easy though. I think I need to work backwards in order to really re-examine my life as an english major because those years are much clearer to me and will hopefully help me to understand more fully why on Earth I am still to this day sitting in english courses!

Day one of Class

The first day of class was intriguing to say the least. Beginning class with T.S. Eliot's Four Quartets was the best way to begin...time present and time past. The words or passages that stuck in my head while Dr. Sexson was reading are as folows:
~ time present, time past
~what could have been
~the door we never opened
~Dust
~First world
~Deception of Thrush
~Human kind cannot bear much reality
~Always present

I love this list and as I type it the recitation of this poem comes back to me and places even more thoughts in my head...good thing the room for thoughts is endless! There is so much to be said about time past and present and the time we have not yet had where could we possibly begin?!

EPIPHANY!
I was discussing this class with one of my French Professors and I said that the subject matter was "epiphanies" and her response was "Oh Lisa, that is just what you need!" I don't know if I should laugh or take a deep breath and realize...she is so very right about this! Perhaps both...

A sudden manifestation of the divine.

And now i must sadly admit I do not think my T.S. Eliot thought in class about the first world was an epiphany at all....simply a thought. It did not take over my thoughts!

Day one of Class

The first day of class was intriguing to say the least. Beginning class with T.S. Eliot's Four Quartets was the best way to begin...time present and time past. I am absolutely enthralled at how the classes I have taken with Dr. Sexson all seem to connect in some wonderfully brilliant way....