What's Next?

When my husband of 27 years died in 2002, I suddenly became a "widow" on every form imaginable. The title didn't sit well with me. As part of the baby boomer generation, I had held a job and maintained a sense of financial independence most of my life. To me, the title "widow" meant an elderly, grandmotherly woman who probably lacked adequate resources and would soon be moving in with her children. In 2002, I barely had my last child out of college, so the image just didn't match. More than six years later, I can safely say that I've unearthed a whole new genre of woman: the working widow. I'm not the only one, and I've found a host of fellow travelers out there, some struggling to survive, some living well but carefully, and some living very well. Working widows are holding great jobs, putting children through college, creating new businesses, writing books, selling items and ideas, and (for the most part) keeping their chins high. These women a...

One of the best things about being located in coastal Georgia is my proximity to the ocean. I'm not close enough to fear hurricanes and floods, but I am close enough to get there every once in a while to walk and enjoy some "hydrotherapy." There's nothing quite as soothing as the sound of waves breaking on a sandy beach. So Rachel and I took the 15-minute drive from her house to the beach at Tybee Island this week to walk and talk and enjoy a really beautiful day. Even in Georgia, a December day in the 80s is remarkable. I am enjoying the first luxury vacation I can remember in years. I've been all over the country and even over the ocean, but each trip has been away from home and involved a suitcase. This month between semesters is a vacation at home, where I can sleep in, plan my day, write, blog, shop, and read without interruption and without worrying about whether I have clean underwear for tomorrow. I must remember to be grateful next April, when I'm...

In November, the College of Education at Georgia Southern University hosted a screening of Two Million Minutes, a documentary film produced by venture capitalist Robert Compton. In his international dealings, Compton discovered that high school students in India and China studied longer and harder than American students; that discovery prompted him to develop the film. In case you wonder about the title: Two Million Minutes is the estimated number of minutes that students spend in four years of high school. Compton believes that America is losing its competitive edge because American students are becoming less and less interested in studying mathematics and science. In the film he contrasts the academic, social, and family lives of six high school students -- two American, two Chinese, two Indian -- and finds American students more social and less interested in academics. There's a reason for this: Chinese and Indian families believe that achievement in math and science is not on...

Although I've put up the obligatory tree (pre-lit, ten minutes), placed evergreen boughs on the mantle, and put my childhood nativity set on the bookshelf, it still doesn't seem like Christmas--at least not yet. There's no stress, but no excitement, either. Actually, I'm feeling a sense of relief. When Herbie was around, Christmas was a whirlwind. A toy for every great-niece and nephew, as many cookies as my kitchen could produce, chocolate and peanut butter fudge, a real tree, presents filling the living room, and a houseful of people for the family visits. It was such fun, and I was so tired. I never had enough time or money to do all the things we planned, and I always missed something. After his passing, Christmas became quieter. Rachel and John and my grand-dog, Dixie, stayed for the week, I put up a tree, but cut back on the food. Presents were easy, because the kids were just out of college and getting started in life. When I moved to Georgia, I worked long hours...

I am looking forward with great delight to early May next year, when my wonderful daughter and son-in-law will become parents and I, by default, will become a grandmother! Truly, I never planned to reach this stage, but now that it's here I am ecstatic. You can imagine the type of grandmother I'll be. The baby already has a meager library of six books--all signed by the authors--and it's not even born yet! In order to spread the wealth I will be giving the new parents baby clothes for Christmas, and perhaps a few boxes of disposable diapers (do they come in boxes?). Speaking of diapers, this heartwarming event will give me lots to consider about baby care, since it's been 29 years--gasp--since I've been on that job. Believe it or not, I raised a child without disposable diapers and a diaper genie, without a snugli, and without a lot of other neat stuff that lines the shelves today. The only essential was a blanket with a silky edge, and this baby's silky is alre...

Teaching four sections of first-year composition this semester has made me happier than I've been in a long time. People who know me well can see the change in my demeanor and hear the lift in my voice, and to a person, they've all told me how pleased they are for me. So what has made me happier? First and foremost, the 85 students I've become acquainted with during the past few months. Some have responded well and their writing has improved; some have stayed the same. Some weren't meant to be writers, and they don't intend to change. No matter what their level of writing ability, they all have ideas to offer and stories to share. Getting to know new faces and new personalities makes me happy. I am happier being in charge of my own classroom. I plan each day with learning outcomes in mind, take responsibility for what comes next, answer questions in the best way I can, share my writing experiences, and wait for reaction. Sometimes it comes; sometimes it doesn't...

Somewhere in the middle of my graduate program in counseling psychology I grasped the developmental point of view. Suddenly, Erik Erikson's eight stages of life provided a framework through which I could view my life and the lives of others in a way that made absolute sense to me and offered a logical way of getting through life more easily. In the years since the lightbulb went on, I have been grateful for developmental theory as a way to explain personal growth and change; lately, as I consider the difficult times the United States is facing, I've been trying to adapt Erikson's stages to our nation. I crave a reason for why we are in the mess we are in, and I crave hope for the way out of it. Developmental theory just might be the answer. Stage I is Infancy: Birth to 18 Months Ego Development Outcome: Trust vs. Mistrust Basic strength: Drive and Hope Drive and hope were certainly apparent at our nation's birth, and our early relationships with other nations were fraug...

I try to watch the ABC Evening News each night, and tonight I succeeded. Reporting from across America, Charlie Gibson intoned a phrase I liked: "the economy trumps all." But after a week of steady discussion about the economy, I am filled with concern about America--and Americans. Back in elementary, middle, and high school, and later in college, I learned a lot about the Stock Market Crash of 1929 and Great Depression that followed. The economic crisis that sunk Americans into a decade of poverty followed years of irresponsible speculative investment in the late 1920s. Hundreds of thousands of Americans put their money into stocks, with a significant number even borrowing money to purchase shares. By August 1929, brokers were routinely lending small investors more than 2/3 of the face value of the stocks they were buying--a neat opportunity called "buying on the margin." In light of rising sales, the stock prices rose far above their potential earnings, creating...

I went to the 2008 Georgia Conference on Information Literacy last weekend unsure of what to expect. I came away with fascinating topical information that will not only help me become more diverse in the classroom, but also give me a new perspective on my personal writing. I am so glad I went. One of the most useful sessions was the Friday session on the unfamiliar-genre research project. I know how I define genre, but it was helpful to see how my colleagues define it and how they implement the concept in their classrooms. While I was accustomed to the narrow focus of literary genre, they expanded my view to writing genre, which is much broad and more important for students. They demonstrated how students can implement a research project in an unfamiliar writing genre and carry it out in various steps over a semester. Now that I'm updated, students, watch out! Another concept I brought back from the conference is The Big6 model for teaching information literacy skills. Go to http:/...

As I prepare for tomorrow's classes, I can't help but feel a flutter of anticipation for the essays I'll be receiving from each of the four sections I teach. Will they be good, bad, ugly, or just acceptable? Experience tells me that there will be some of each. When I opted to use "Choosing Civility," at least one person warned me that today's 18-year-olds wouldn't "get it." He told me that a precious few of my students would already understand and use Forni's list, and the others wouldn't be mature enough to grasp the concept. I hope I'll be able to prove him wrong. One important part of writing instruction that I haven't introduced is workshopping, the idea of sharing what you've written with others and using their critiques to improve your writing. I've decided that now is the time, and this week we'll be exploring some of the writing we've done so far. We'll work anonymously at first, then in small groups us...

Every student knows they will face some sort of evaluation: a quiz, a test, homework, or in the case of ENG1101, essays. But did you ever stop to think about the evaluations teachers face? My first evaluations come from my students, and I receive them in subtle ways. How do I handle the student who thinks it's a stitch whenever he or she finds a way to disrupt the class? How do I handle the student who can barely stay awake? Can I do it in a way that benefits the class AND the student? I evaluate myself, too. After every class I get my own grade for saying and doing the right--or wrong--thing. Have I explained the assignment clearly enough? Have I let student know what I want them to learn? I went to a class yesterday on designing a syllabus and I learned that I can always do better. Perhaps the most telling evaluation comes from my colleagues. When another faculty member comes into my classroom to observe and offer thoughts on how I could do better, I know I'll be nervous. I a...

There's an old joke, probably originated by Henny Youngman, who must be at least 100 by now, that goes like this: A tourist in New York walked up to me one day and said, "How do you get to Carnegie Hall?" I told him "Practice, man, practice!" It's the same with writing. The best way to become a good writer is to write every day. Better still, write something one day, edit it the next. The next best way to become a good writer is to read. Don't limit yourself to reading for your classes, read about current events, historical events, religion, philosophy, science, and anything you are interested in. You can add to your writer's inventory of information by interviewing the people close to you: Mom, Dad, grandparents, neighbors, and others who can talk about life today versus life in the past. And talk to some dreamers, too, who can talk about life in the future. You're on your way to becoming good writers by keeping this blog! Keep up the good work....

It's happenend. We're only two weeks into the First-Year Writing, and the question has surfaced: What exactly should I write about? My response: What are you interested in? What do you have an opinion about? What do you care about? Writing is a process that starts in your mind and your heart. It requires enough curiosity to keep you moving forward, and enough resources to keep you interested. I can tell you about collecting your writer's inventory, planning your essay, and developing it to its fullest, but your thesis, your lead, your main idea -- that's up to you. And sometimes, especially when you are young, that's the hardest part of writing. When I assigned Choosing Civility for your first reading, I did so for a variety of reasons. It's good information, and it will be useful throughout your life. A great deal has been written about civility in all areas of life, so library resources on your chosen topic should be abundant. Yes, you WILL have to do libra...

The classroom has changed since my previous teaching experiences, so I took a major leap of faith when I decided to have all 88 students in my English 1101 classes create blogs. Would I be able to get them started? Would they be able to write? As it turned out, they are doing just fine. I'm the nervous one! They've never lived in a world that didn't have blogs and Windows and computers and cell phones. Some of them might remember the world before texting, I don't know. But blogging has turned out to be the writing practice I hoped for. My students have impressed me! Mrs. B

I finally made the trip to Hilton Head last weekend. I've been transplanted in Statesboro for nearly three years, and my golfing friends in the snowbelt found it hard to believe that I hadn't made the trek. To be fair, I did try it once before, but I only made it as far as the outlet malls on Rt. 278. Last Saturday, with my favorite traveling companion at the wheel, I got my first close look at the golfer's paradise. Since I don't golf, I was looking for other positive attributes. One interesting thing about Hilton Head was the decorative way that foliage runs rampant along the highway, and businesses lurk behind the foliage. And I do mean lurk. Unless you are a fast reader of those classy signs--many hidden by the foliage--you'll have hard time finding grocery stores, pharmacies, and most everything else. All those trees are picturesque but not practical. We explored Coligny Plaza, an interesting place for strolling and shopping. We went into Tail-Waggers, a pet su...

Being a writer means that you're always volunteering for something. You volunteer because you believe--mistakenly--that no one can write a better letter, or press release, or newsletter, or sermon, than you. Yes, I wrote a sermon. Pastor G. was going on vacation, and I agreed to fill in so the church would not have to pay a supply pastor. Before he left, the pastor gave me material to develop my thoughts and focus my writing. I read through it very carefully, and then I wrote exactly what I wanted. My sermon touted the inescapability of death, taxes, and change. I talked about the need for a steady force in our lives, because each day brought something new. I'm remembering that sermon today as I embark on a new step--teaching First-Year Writing. I've earned a living as a writer for several decades, but now, I'm going to make an effort to help first-year students develop the writing skills they will need to succeed in their academic lives and their future employment. I...