Yesterday was my first day (this year) teaching poetry at UCP. We studied Joe Brainard's 'I Remember' and wrote our own remembrances. Here are some of the most startling lines:
I remember when I was a child.
I remember my mother used to carry me and walk to the stairs up and down.
I remember my mom cry because I was stubborn.
I remember the days that I could see.
I remember in the early days when I could walk.
I remember when I used to walk with crutches.
I remember learning Arabic.
The most disturbing lesson I learned yesterday was about how the medical system taught people with cerebral palsy in the 1950's. One of my students who uses a wheelchair told me that she walked until she was 8 yrs. old. Then, she had surgery to 'help' her. She never walked again.
