Postings from Godot
bones and bones
One of the best names for a bus stop in France is called Puits Sans Vin. This means a well without wine. I thought, wow! Some wells have wine?
the lost art of ironing
Ah, housework. I had a friend in France, an English fried, refer to it as “mind numbing housework.”
poetry and politics
Toni Morrison tells a story about a wise old woman who was blind. Her reputation flowers and extends even as far as the city where, as Morrison puts it, “the intelligence of rural prophets is the source of much amusement.
it was a cold and snowy night
It was a cold and snowy night in December when I stood at the podium in front of hard souls at the American Library in Paris about to give a presentation on a novel called in French, La Vie Devant Soi by Romain Gary.
journey of the mind
It is unusual to see the song “Swanee River” in the same sentence with William Blake’s poem, “The Little Black Boy.” But these two pieces
the Aran Islands
If you live in Europe, it probably goes without saying that all of Europe is close by, but you will not believe how close.
who you going to call?
No car and importantly no driver’s license–this state describes many more people than you might imagine living in Paris and its environs. What’s a person to do?
the cool factor
Quantum Superposition. This fancy term defines a system that can exist in more than one quantum state at the same time. There is a principle associated with this term, and an equation, so it must be real.
history today
Novels serve an interesting function in China, which is to subvert the official narrative. Instead, there’s lots of gossip and many versions of a story.
out in left field?
The American School of Paris is a joyful place. Faculty meetings include brie and wine. The Extension Program, where I worked, is a part of ASP and is an outreach program for French kids eager to learn English. (Or at least their parents are eager for them to learn.)
how to live a fantasy life in ze France
Beedis. That is the way to a fantasy life in ze France. Did I basically lose you at hello? First of all, what are beedis?
double double toil and trouble
Imagine a sunny July day. You are a 4th grader on your way to three weeks of English study and creativity in the Extension Program’s Summer School at the American School of Paris
how many lives does one human have?
Champagne was in the air! (Remark: How many times is she going to talk about champagne? I almost with
godot in paradise
The fiction author, George Saunders, recently spoke about qualities inherent in the short story: efficiency, escalation, and even transcendence. Some literary works do not adhere to this pattern, he said, such as “Waiting for Godot, but
godot
French students study French literature in a curious way.
remembering Noor-un-nisa Inayat Khan
A poem by the Sufi mystic Rumi begins, “The breeze at dawn has secrets to tell you. Don’t go back to sleep.”
celebration
The holiday season in France is a testimony to how much the French value celebration.
grammatical crimes and other misdemeanors
One of the funniest stories about travel and crimes and not really speaking the language occurred in a bathroom in a small hotel in Italy.
godot’s excuse
There’s a New Yorker cartoon where Godot, in a baseball cap and a hoodie, apologizes for begin late. He says, “I slept through my alarm, …
godot time
Godot time
a Hurry
A friend of mine who was a member of a Zen sangha once told me that he and his wife were the only ones not to pass the test of the koan
remembrance II
A man who had meditated twice a day for forty years described his practice this way “My early morning practice sometimes get delayed until 6 pm.”
remembrance
A friend of mine sent me an article from the NY Times by Andrew Russeth, (Sept 17, 2020), “Art About Waiting and What It Takes to Endure.” Naturally, this article will turn to Godot.
divine intervention
Now that we’ve established that the kid is the boss in a foreign country, it’s time to see the things the children get up to over there in France
who’s boss?
William Wordsworth writes, “The child is father of the man.” While he means this in a philosophical way, any ex-pat who isn’t really in the know in the new country will discover
let’s eat!
Voulez-vous coucher avec moi? Non! I mean, veux-tu dîner chez moi?
food
Have you ever bought an avocado? Of course not!
19 crimes and other misdemeanors (moving)
Moving is not really anything to write home about. Perhaps this is why Beckett says of his people in his play, Waiting for Godot,
five minute holiday
We are all doing too much waiting–for the pandemic to be over; for a vaccine to arrive; waiting for the end of those awful tallies rising. Wait, what?
Innisfree
I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree.
let’s get out of Dodge
For us, “Dodge,” meant working over at the Archives in Suresnes, where the English lectures of Inayat Khan were being assembled and published chronologically.
back to French school gangnam style
The hour is nigh; the first of September is the very day when school kids return to class this year in France.
ordinary life + poor French = yikes!
Speaking a language (and I use that word speaking approximatively) in another country is a lot like going to the country fair and throwing a ball at a wooden duck. A hit and miss affair.
Sufi Music and the Jazz Greats
The general hilarity of living across the street from a Sufi master was tempered by the very fact of the master, whose measured sense of purpose had inspired thousands around the world, including, of course, his family.
somersaults and other French dangers
I don’t know how to tell you this, but sometimes and American or even a person (in case these are two different things) can be totally clueless in France.
remodeling redux
The foundation’s treasurer, full of vim and energy (or prunes as my mother’s friend used to say) assured us that all remodeling would be finished within three months. Well …
Remodeling
Estragon, one of the gentlemen in Waiting for Godot gives his opinion about where they are. The particular spot where the tow of them now find themselves is exactly where they were yesterday.
A house, a home, a haunted house?
We see Godot’s people in a state of disrepair, much like a house can be in disrepair. One of them has a problem shoe.
moving to Paris
“Is there any terrestrial paradise where, amidst the whispering of the olive-leaves, people can be with whom they like and have what they like and take their ease in shadows and in coolness?”
driving tests and other challenges
Kevin Barry, our friend who wrote Beatlebone, remarked recently in an interview with the Paris Review that he was going to take his driver’s test at the age of 50, and that it was touch and go.
driving
Welcome back to writing4godot. If you have ever driven in Paris, you will be shaking your head before you get to the end of this sentence.
the Beatles
The first car we bought in France, a tomato red Volvo, had once belonged to a Zen master.
juneteenth
Juneteenth has been in the news lately. On June 19, 1865, slaves in Texas got word that Lincoln had signed the Emancipation Proclamation 2 years earlier—in short, that they were freed.
welcome
Greetings!
Monsieur Godot has been a friend of mine for many years, and I dare say a friend of yours as well. You might be, like, Godot? He’s that guy that two men are waiting for in a French play, some important person who doesn’t show? Yes. So why do we care?