At A Conference On Literacy & Imagination
Dogood’s only regret was that he was in Cape Town for business, not pleasure. He made his way past the registration desk. It was not as busy as the first day. The ushers in conference uniform: white T-shirts and blue jeans, were there to guide the few guests who reported on the second day of the conference. Three conference organisers were in an animated conversation. One of them furiously turned the pages of the conference program. After a few minutes, she wrote on the whiteboard next to the registration desk. Standing near them with all the worries and impatience of a nation was a participant from Tanzania. As he had registered late, his name was not in the conference program, and he was afraid he might not present. A broad smile wiped out his concerns when he saw his name and the title of his presentation written on the whiteboard.
Choirgirl
Choirgirl walked through the entrance of the upmarket cafe. A male security guard ushered her in. Her blue dress hugged her, revealing curves that are always hidden under the choir uniform. Like a woodpecker, her high heels rhythmically ate away at the café’s tiles. She swayed her hips from left and right as she made her way in the jungle of tables and occupied chairs. She scanned across looking for him, but also as if her nostrils were chasing every aroma in the air. She shifted her heavy handbag to her left hand. She had stuffed two bottles of perfume she bought as she waited to go in; she didn’t want to seem too eager to meet him.
Sermon: A Tale of Two Donkeys
“Our sermon today is based on the story of two donkeys. Yes church, you heard me, donkeys. Hee-haw, hee-haw, hee-haw!” Dogood’s braying was so convincing that some in the congregation looked around for the donkey and the owner of the pet. If he had been out, he would have fooled the real donkeys.
“Donkeys are pets in some places. For some people, donkey meat is a delicacy. Many of us have unwittingly eaten donkey meat. In some places, they are pack animals or beasts of burdens. And in other places, they become circus animals after they are painted to look like zebras. Donkeys are very generous—they can breed with horses and zebras.
Four in One
“Globalization, connectivity, networking and innovation are terms that are bandied everywhere. How much of that is encouraged in our classrooms? We are training learners to pursue disciplinary isolationism. We are sharpening compartmentalized thinkers–people who have to be prompted to turn on specific parts of their brains. I am about to tell you a joke, switch on your creative side of the brain.”
“Yet, all of us, learners, teachers, curriculum developers and all the other stakeholders, are expected to practice multidisciplinary approach to everyday issues. This can be difficult because of the deep chasms created around the subjects. In fact, in some quarters they have been advocating for the scrapping of art subjects. The language teacher says, ‘This is not Science.’ The science teacher says, ‘We don’t focus on small lifeless things like commas and full stops. If I can’t study it under a microscope, I am not interested. By the way, what is the temperature of a joke? What are the pH levels of fiction, songs or paintings?”
Destiny Motifs
Dogood wrote an expository essay on destiny motifs. He had a difficult time starting the essay as reminders of all the essays he had written over the years, most of them fictional and still in his imagination, distracted him. He saw the light when he recalled a definition he gave at a teachers’ workshop. “An expository essay is a type of writing in which the writer exposes a topic or exposes themselves to the topic.”
Do you believe in destiny, a predetermined cause of events? If so then there must be little markers or patterns or motifs that direct you along your path of life. For instance, the motif of wood in the life of Jesus– He was born in a manger to a carpenter and died on the cross. I will use two stories from the Bible to illustrate destiny motifs: Moses the waterman and the dressing and undressing of Joseph.
Judge Dogood Interviews the Interviewers
Dogood was at another interview. It had gone well, or so he thought. He had answered all the questions effortlessly.
There were three panelists, two of them male.
“Mr. Dogood, Do you have any questions for us?’
“Thank you. I have a couple. I printed them out.”
Dogood took the questions from his document folder.
“You came prepared.” One of the panelists said.
“Thank you. You can answer the questions in any order.” Dogood said as he gave them the questions.
Dogood had printed twelve questions.
Judge Dogood’s Vocabulary Lesson
Dogood was invited to Maranda County to talk to language teachers on creative ways of teaching vocabulary.
“With new words being coined every day how are we expected to master the core vocabulary?” Dogood introduced his presentation.
“The English language has many words, with many unpredictable spellings and pronunciations. Just when you think you have mastered the pronunciations of words starting with ‘ch’, you come across words like chinook, chimera, chacma baboon. How are they pronounced and what do they mean?
“With all the 21st Century distractions, the job of the language teacher has just become impossible. To say that you are expected to be imaginative, creative and resourceful is not even stating the obvious. That is why we have to use short stories, flash fiction and anecdotes to teach specific vocabulary items.
Judge Dogood at a Job Interview
Judge Dogood sat in an active posture as he responded passively to the interview questions. The questions were mundane; maybe he had over-prepared for the interview.
“Tell us about yourself?”
“Where did you go to school?”
“Why did you study English and Literature?”
“Why did you apply for this job?”
“Why do you think you are the best candidate for this job?”
“How did you learn about the job opening?”
He had prepared well. He was in a grey suit, a royal blue starched shirt and a maroon silk tie. This was a rarity for him. He has always considered suits and especially ties a choke on creativity. He could tell he was smart by the expressions he got when he walked in. Dogood had even prepared on how to study the interviewers. As he was answering questions he would take time to study their body language and facial expressions. He had been rehearsing for a week.
Before answering each question he would pause as a way of adding thoughtfulness to his answers. There were six panelists in all; two females.
So far so good. They were nodding along to his answers, and not out of politeness, but in agreement and out of convictions. He had them and he had the job.