Forsan et haec olim meminisse iuvabit. . . . . that is a quotation from Vergil’s Aeneid and means “Perhaps someday it will pleasant to remember these things” . . . and Plato believed that learning was really a process of remembering whereby we seem to learn for the first time lessons we actually experienced in the past . . . I hope that these memories will be pleasant for you to recall someday and that you will learn from them . . . I could begin by reminding you of my fondness for Chris and how I enjoyed his feistiness, but I rather remember him begging for mercy . . . . I could remember Keith, slyly provoking Chris, who of course would react and be the one blamed, but I rather remember his love of great literature, which blossomed when he read The Odyssey with such attention to the significant detail . . . I could mention how many times a day I told Luke not to lean back in this chair, but I’ll pass by that because I rather remember the two great philosophical poems he wrote at the end of the year . . . remember, Luke, good writing comes from having something to say and YOU DO have something to say . . . and Abe, I will remember the twinkle in your eyes and your comically provocative questions, .. . . . no josh but jostles truth . . . . and Chase, I remember Saturday mornings – one on one we understood each other – and I will remember how helpful you were . . . like On the Day in Old Rome when you helped Alex Rodriguez fire his catapult . . . . and Lizzie, I will remember always the first poem you wrote when you discovered the magnetic board and how your voice grew under the care of Marian Haddad . . . and I thank you for always reminding me of small but important things that constantly escaped my attention . . . Alan, I will especially remember your report on A River Runs Through It , . . . remember the day Paul found a motion all his own. . . the whole class enjoyed the fly-casting exercise . . . and Mitchell, I will always remember your ability to ask fundamental questions that seemed comical to others, but profound to me . . . and Ryan, I will remember how my appreciation of your talent grew . . I remember you in Charley Brown . . . how wonderfully talented you are . . . and Devin, I will remember how you asked good questions right from the beginning when you questioned the anti-Semitism in the Grimm’s stories. . . you were right then as you were often on other occasions . . . and Elizabeth Wilson, I will remember the day when I recognized for the first time your poetic insight, there was a sea-change after that . . . the battle of Harry Potter and the dictionaries goes on . . Lauren, I will remember your respectful challenges, especially the time when you questioned the method I was using to interpret poetry . . . that a poem may mean something different to different people, but there is still a way of validating your interpretation by showing how it works throughout the poem as a whole . . . and Madison, I will always remember how determined you were, despite being often mystified by our writing assignments . . . and Paige, yes, I do know you can be mischievous, but I prefer to remember your willingness to revise essays that were already very good . . . the way you went about your work was truly a model for others . . Annie McAllister, one of my best Latin students, I will remember most especially your growing confidence which allowed you to stand before the whole school at Declamation . . . you did a wonderful job . . . . Lindsey, I remember you in the sixth grade, you were in control then and you still are, but best I will remember working with you on your Odyssey story . . . you had such wonderful ideas, it really helped me envision the last trial of Odysseus . . . Patrick, who rides the dictionaries, I will remember how pleasant it was to chat with you . . . your conversation was whimsical and sophisticated . . . you were never in doubt and only occasionally wrong . . . Do you remember how tough I could be on you? . . . I remember with pleasure how you never held a grudge . . . Alex, grasshopper, so often overwhelmed, so able to meet every challenge, . . . what a wonderful writer you are . . . I will always hear your voice “You need to put more energy into the class”; “you need more sleep” – and I remember how wonderfully mischievous you and Kate and Katherine could be . . . thanks for showing me those hidden places in the school . . . I think there are a few more you need to tell me about before you leave . . . And Kate, I remember your poetry, especially your Declamation poem, and Katherine, I will remember yours and Alex’s Odyssey video and your strong grip . . . and I know all three of you -- Alex, Kate and Katherine – will remember my counsel – “Accept the consequences!” . . . .and Elizabeth Bobbitt, I will remember the beautiful curl of your writing, especially your short stories, and the strong current of your reading aloud . . . like a river rushing out to the sea. . . and Maura, I remember your penetrating intelligence and darkly searching verses, especially the last one you wrote for me . .a father’s heart, a trickster’s eye, a master’s mind, a poet’s sigh . . .thank you .. . . and M.E. Cooper, I will remember your wonderful drawing, your playfulness, your lovely poem to me, your love of mythology . . . and Ali, HERE I AM – I know you loved that phrase – you will probably remember it as long as I will remember YOU’RE IN TROUBLE, MR. HIMWICH. . . and Ali, I will remember how finally you listened to me about how to write a formal essay . . . thanks for that insight about Shakespeare . . . and Annie Hicks, born out of time, did we know each other in the sixties?. . . no Albus Cuniculus for you . . . thanks so much for your whimsical insights and for your wonderful drawings . . . and Amy the Proud, Amy the Smart, Amy the Stubborn, . . . Remember the day we spent together studying – that’s when I realized just how gifted you are . . . Ashley, magistra, sodalis, snoopy, what you have given St. Luke’s is beyond measure, . . . da mi basia is never to be forgotten . . . What great fun it is to work with you . . it takes three years to build a Latin program, but because of you and your cohorts, we did it in one .. and Elizabeth Lyons, firefly, girl who stares straight ahead into the bright lights, remember when you told me “Don’t let them take Gilgamesh away from us!” . . . I will never forget. . thanks . . . and Evans, my prep school mate, things somehow always turned out your way . . . you will be homesick, but you will also love Middlesex, … where no one has yet heard your wonderful reading of Frankie and Johnny . . and Emily Molina, gremlin, siren, asker of difficult and profound questions like What is genius? And What is poetry? . . . and you were right to not be satisfied with the answers you received . . . you emerged as a poet whom everyone respected . . . and Erica, I will remember your commitment to your beliefs and your family, it was wonderful that you are here to graduate with friends you have had for so long . . . and Cheyney, poet, instigator, writer of wonderfully whimsical verse and prose, you could be so stubborn, you are so talented . . . and Liz Biz, minimalist, the less said the better . . . or so you believe unless of course you’re telling someone that the best four years of his life were spent in first grade . . . and Emily Turner, I will read the other Harry Potter books as soon as they are translated into Latin . . . you, who know me so well, thanks for your generosity towards me and all your classmates . . . and finally, of course, MOODY, MALIGNANT THING, LOUD POET (I never said that despite what Cheyney says), you are a wonderful poet but I have one last piece of advice for you --Don’t write philosophical poetry! . . . . or do I underestimate you! I am sure I am in trouble again . . . and finally, Rosalind, who has always been with us . . . when we remember her, we know that what Plato said is true . . . by remembering we learn . . . .
I want you all to know that the day you leave St. Luke’s you will become my students forever. . . I came to St. Luke’s because of you and the affection I feel for you has only grown with each passing day until now I am barely able to let you go . . . thank you for making this old man young again.
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