Why am I writing this personal entry? Well, it is not an attempt to gain any sympathy. It attempts to show what is possible if a clear intention and goal serve the learner's needs. In May of 2022 just near the end of another fantastic school year, I do not remember what happened. But, I was unable to finish the school year and was unable to teach the following year. Why? On May 21st, 2022, I fell down a flight of 16 stairs (luckily carpeted) from the 2nd to 1st story of our home. I was found at the bottom of the stairs. I was found foaming at the mouth. This would lead to a 2-month hospital stay which included an induced coma because my seizures would not stop, several rounds of lumbar punctures, and relearning basic physical movements like something as simple as being able to roll in the hospital bed. Simply put, when I was admitted to the hospital, I was diagnosed as being “critically ill.” Please take a moment and read those words: critically ill. They are not terms...
Citizen Kane is artistically the most influential film of all time. If you have never seen it, you should stop reading this blog and go watch it. I don't ever care if you don't come back and read the rest of this post. It is more important to the world at large that you experience the wonder that is this film. Sit yourself down and watch it on a screen bigger than a mobile device. In fact, make sure you put your mobile device away, there is to be no second screen experience with this one. Make sure you turn of the lights or close the curtains for the optimal viewing experience. If you haven't seen it in a while, you owe it to yourself to see the beautiful 70th anniversary restoration. So to give a little context to you who have forgotten the story, rich recluse Charles Foster Kane utters the word "rosebud" with his dying breath. The movie follows a reporter as he attempts to uncover the mystery of what rosebud is. The film closes with the following cl...