Pronto?

A cute memory of my dad came up while I was teaching last night. We were reading some vocabulary for pronunciation when we came across the word pronto. Do you ever have those moments when certain words or certain phrases repeat in your head in that signature way someone else says it? My dad used to answer the phone (no matter where he was) like an Italian would by saying pronto? with his goofy American accent. It didn't matter where we were. He made the mistake of doing it once in a hotel in Italy and quickly realized if he answered in that manner they would respond in Italian. He was one of those people that loved the language but just never quite got it. He studied some Italian while I was living in Italy but the second he was around it he shut off his ears. After 10 years of visits, he still could never pronounce the name of the city where I lived.

It is interesting how different each person's mind works. He was a methodical thinker being an engineer turned architect. When there are acceptions to grammar rules or idiomatic phrases he just didn't get it. I noticed this a lot teaching at UW. I learned Italian through immersion so sometimes I have that motherly response of: That's just how it is. Maybe it's the artist in me. I can deal with not everything following the rules and go with the flow. I have one student in my current 101 class who is just not getting it. He is waiting for that formula to allow everything to make sense or that magical lightbulb moment to occur rather than make it happen. You have to put in extra effort to make it happen. Luckily he approached me about this and we had a wonderful chat about the different study tactics and methods he can try, so we'll see how he feels at the end of the quarter. Wow. I didn't think that little memory would stir up so much thought. I have struggled a lot with those surrounding me who think way too big picture, and never make anything happen. There are so many initiatives that I have spent hours of energy and creative problem solving to start, but they fall to the wayside because the big thinkers don't come back to help with implementation. A lolely admin really has no leverage to start new policies in a large company. They live in the clowds without any feasible timeline or process to get to their goals. With this mentality comes a lot of complaining and whining over current policies or personal states of mind. Unfortunately, in my current work environment I am doing the same. I complain but have no capacity to really take action. I'm ready for my little Oregon expedition this week to clear my head a bit and to reflect on what I need to and should do. Ironically this post is coming full circle. The conclusion is that I need to take action. The literal translation of the word pronto? is ready?.