How do you act out a preposition?

For whatever reason, I give free English lessons each weekday. Perhaps it’s some form of karmic cleansing. Perhaps it provides a little bit of that structure I’m always talking about. Whatever the reason, there is something about teaching that gives me a great thrill. The thrill comes from many different directions at once. In one way, it allows me an opportunity to reflect on my own struggles learning to speak the Laos language. It’s an opportunity to pay it forward. And there is the thrill of going to the office supply store to buy materials for visual aids. There is the thrill of maybe getting some return on that time spent pursuing performing arts. In other ways, it gives me a chance to do what I love the most: help other people.

In all my classes, whether they are English or computer science or meditation, I make a concerted effort to make sure it is fun. In fact, I try to make class silly. The class has to be fun for me and it has to be fun for my students. If we are not having fun, we are not learning. Of course, there are always obstacles to bring the fun to class. Sometimes I’m tired or unprepared. Sometimes someone is late. One of the most frustrating obstacles for me is when I will say one word, “some” for example, which will cause a long discussion in the Laos language. I’m learning to let it slide.

The other day, my students showed up early and made lunch for all of us. It’s a nice gesture and I was grateful for it – it is true that feeding someone is one of the nicest things a person can do. However, the gesture created a certain challenge to my agenda. With full bellies, the students were likely to fall asleep. After lunch is the most difficult time to teach.

To counteract the drowsiness of my students, I knew I would have to really knock the lesson out of the park. I would have to draw on all my presentation skills – skills beyond simply switching from one side of the whiteboard to another – in order to keep their attention and make an indelible impression. To add insult to injury, today’s subject was prepositions (you remember them right? In, on, above, through, with, to…).

It’s relatively easy to act out the verbs – walk, shout, am. It’s also not so hard to point to nouns and dress them up with adjectives. Even adverbs are not so hard to impersonate… if I am silly enough to demonstrate carefully, quickly, slowly and so on, there is a chance they might just remember. However, acting out through and at and with is a bit more of a challenge; Toward was nearly impossible.

We made it through prepositions I had planned. Salt played a big role in the lesson. The salt is on the table, above the table, under the table, with the glass, behind the glass. There was a combination of horror and laughter when the salt went in the glass. For me, my mind was somewhere else. The salt water.

I miss the salt water. I miss the ocean. Today, I will head toward the west and make my way to the Gulf of Siam to do some diving. After three months in a landlocked country I need to look upon the ocean. I need to look out over the sea. I need to wade into the ocean. I need to swim in the water. I need to get under the surface and breath from a Nitrox tank. If my entries are a little less frequent over the next two weeks it is not from lack of interest, instead it is simply because I am having a bit more fun.