Little Cat is 17 years old. Things have gotten to the point where he has considered retiring from his job of periodically running away from home and scaring the crap out of Human-Mom. It’s bittersweet. He’s very good at his job. And he obviously loves it. But like so many consummate professionals, he’ll probably retire…
Tag: education
Dance Studio and Classroom
The other day, one of my second grade students, Sally, invited me to her seventh birthday party. Be Careful what you Wish For She is young for this grade. Most of the other students are seven turning eight. She actually skipped first grade. And when you think about the pandemic online year she suffered through,…
Tell One Story (Bangalore Letter #2)
I’m learning Telugu, the mother-tongue of Anuja’s family, by attending the lectures of Doctor M. This sentence won’t strike you as funny until you learn that Doctor M is my nickname for my nephew, who is just shy of his fifth birthday. One of the reasons I came to India is to see him. And…
“Rape” is Just a Four-Letter Word
I don’t want to talk about about rape today. Or any day. March 21 is World Poetry Day. I love reading poetry. I love writing poetry. And six of my last seven columns have been on intense topics: Consent, “Don’t Say Gay” laws, criminalizing gender affirmation, Nazis, and Ukraine. I could use a break. We…
Accent (Caturday Questions)
Little Cat came home from his travels in the big city rocking a Cuban accent. He thinks it sounds sulty but really it sounds annoying. Big Cat started calling him “gringo.” It’s really getting to be too much. How Much is too Much with Accent? What do you think? As a writer, do you use…
Consent: Changing the Conversation
Rape and sexual assault can happen to anyone regardless of gender identity or gender presentation. Likewise, issues of consent can apply to anyone. One of the things that I struggled with as I was writing this is the very binary way in which everything I read and watched during my research fell into an either/or…
Affirming Gender is not a Crime
When I got pregnant with my first child, it seemed like the moment the stick had turned pink, the first thing people asked was: “Are you hoping for a boy or a girl?” When I was far enough along to know what I was having, that question became: “Are you having a boy or a…
Mr. Misunderstanding: Prof. Parker
In loving memory of David Parker (1943-2015) A Good Teacher is Hard to Find, Episode 2 As there’s no good place to start, let me walkbackwards till, I bump into you. Mr. Misunderstanding On numerous occasions, Prof. Parker asked me to call him David, but for some unknown reason, I had never been able to…
Bad Words
“Ms. Lacrete, Ms. Lacrete! Carlyle said a bad word!” Most of the time, when a student complains to me that someone in class said a bad word to them, the recourse is to sit the two students down, and figure out what made them so upset as to curse in the first place. My students…
“Don’t Say Gay” is Bad, Not Just for LGBTQ Kids
(Editors Note: On February 25, 2022, the Florida House of Representatives passed H.B. 1557, “Parental Rights in Education,” colloquially known as the “Don’t Say Gay,” bill. The addendum discussed here, which would have required schools to out LGBTQ kids, was struck from the bill before it was voted on. Meanwhile, The Florida Senate is expected…