I am currently teaching Romeo and Juliet to 9th graders, and recently we read and discussed act 1, scene 5, in which the eponymous characters meet for the first time. During this meeting, Romeo delivers the following speech, one so beautiful and pure as to bring a tear to my eye: O, she doth teach… Continue reading Love at first sight in Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet”
Tag: Teaching
Fred Rogers meets my 10th grade English teacher
Before beginning his story, my 10th grade English teacher lowers the blinds and dims the lights. On retrospection years later, I will recognize this process as what is called “setting the stage,” segmenting a sensory environment so that when these stories occur, I and my classmates will feel privileged and therefore not spill the beans.… Continue reading Fred Rogers meets my 10th grade English teacher
Reincarnation as educational heuristic
Reincarnation is a built-in education modality. According to reincarnation, individual souls populate the world in successive, incremental incarnations, learning or failing to learn lessons each time. Associated concepts include karma (often translated as fate or destiny), dharma (vocation or purpose), and the ultimate goal is to “graduate” from the system such that one no longer… Continue reading Reincarnation as educational heuristic
What we owe one another: a spiritual perspective
This piece was written for and placed third in the Santa Fe Reporter's 2021 nonfiction contest, in response to the prompt "What do we owe one another?" The Reporter's publication of the piece can be found here. I believe that happiness—and not just happiness but profound, unabating bliss—is our birthright. Let me explain. When we… Continue reading What we owe one another: a spiritual perspective
The great centering: my Saturn Return and the loss of grand narratives
On a crisp morning in February of this year, I received an email from the principal of a Catholic school in my area which read: “Dear Jackson, are you currently employed?” From both the tone and the brevity, I instantly knew that this was a job offer to fill an unanticipated absence. It was two… Continue reading The great centering: my Saturn Return and the loss of grand narratives
Jackson Holzberg Buckley 