Is Your Spouse Really Getting on Your Nerves?

Will you become more annoyed with your spouse over time? Comedians have been cracking jokes about their irritating spouses for years, but according to the LiveScience story featured on Yahoo’s front page, there’s actually ‘proof’ that you will become more irritated with your significant other over the course of your life time.

The article gives a number of reasons why this happens, but they leave out one very important factor—the internal narrative. The internal narrative is our perception of the world around us, how we rationalize the interconnecting relationship between events and emotions that we experience everyday.

Let’s imagine, for a moment, a woman who is punctual, organized, and maintains a consistent routine. One day, at the coffee shop, a handsome, confident man introduces himself.

Let’s also imagine that they meet in the middle of winter and the weather is cold and dreary and that the woman is a little frustrated with her stressful job. One evening, during dinner, the man smiles broadly and says, “Why don’t we go to the Bahamas? A little three day vacation; relax on the warm beach, order breakfast in bed—just you and me.”

The woman admits this sounds nice, but when? “Tomorrow,” he suggests. She’s shocked. There’s so much for her to do at work and so many travel arrangements to make. He convinces her he can handle the arrangements and that she will be much more productive when she returns, relaxed and refreshed. She throws caution to the wind and agrees.

Excited about her vacation and the prospect of spending time with such a spontaneous man, she calls her girlfriends while packing. They express their envy and admiration of the handsome suitor, and the woman feels lucky to have found such a great guy.

The woman has created an internal narration in which the man plays the hero of a romantic adventure. This idea is reinforced by her retelling of this narration to others who agree (based on the details she has provided).

When we fall in love, we abstract the good from the beginning knowledge about the other person. We focus on positive traits. We see similarities and compatibilities with our partners—or if we notice differences, we view them as complimentary. As the relationship matures, our sense of the other adjusts to the reality: along with the characteristics we admire, our beloved (alas) has some flaws. We are forced to acknowledge that there are no angels—only fallen angels. (Vaughan 2

Of course, later in the relationship, we are often annoyed by the very traits we once found so charming. After years of marriage, the handsome man’s “spontaneous” nature may be reinterpreted as immaturity or irresponsibility. Why?—because we begin to rewrite the internal narration. Surely the handsome man has always left the toilet seat up, but as time goes on it becomes a symbol of disrespect or inconsideration.

In a healthy relationship, both individuals continually realign these internal narrations through open communication. Without this process the relationship can slip into a downward spiral:

As relationships become troubled, our focus shifts again, this time to negative qualities. We redefine our partners and relate to them in terms of their objectionable traits. We see more differences than similarities—or regard the differences now as troublesome and unattractive. Out of our increasing unhappiness, we start to dwell on and even exaggerate our partner’s flaws. (Vaughan 2

Left unchecked, these negative definitions can compound until the relationship is viewed as unsaveable and we become the initiators of our own ‘uncoupling.’

Not only do initiators redefine their partners in negative terms, but they also reconstruct the history of the relationship, reordering their reminiscences into negative chronology of events. The good times are forgotten or explained away . . . [while] The bad times form the salient memories. (Vaughan 29)

Yes, the LiveScience article illustrates that most individuals will find their spouse more annoying over time, but we have to admit it is a reality we create for ourselves.

Work Cited

Vaughan, Diane. Uncoupling: Turningpoints in Intimate Relationships. Vintage Books: New York. 1990

Connecting with Patry Francis

My three-year-old daughter smells like soap and toothpaste as she crawls into bed next to me. It’s ten o’clock at night and I’ve just returned from the Intensive Care Unit where I kissed my husband goodnight on the forehead. My daughter knows daddy is sick, but in her mind he’s suffering from the flu.

It’s not the flu, though. It’s a rare but reoccurring blood disease. So rare, in fact, it has yet to be diagnosed.

In 1982, his father walked for miles—from an apartment in Havanah to the church of Saint Lazaro in the Cuban countryside. He went there to pray for his two-year-old son, who was dying from a mysterious blood disease. He would make the trip again two years later, when my husband was only four, and again at six. During each episode, doctors would begin a barrage of tests, ruling out one disease after another. Every member of the extended family went in for genetic testing. Still, his condition remained unexplained

This is his sixth stay in the hospital. His symptoms are not as severe as when he was a child, but his condition is still critical. But through it all, we are grateful. This rare blood condition is very similar to so many others, other diseases that are fatal, diseases that create lethal toxins and destroy organs. Yet, my husband continues to recover.

He also hopes doctors will be able to discover something new during this episode, something that may help others with the same condition. Perhaps they can learn something about how his body manages to self correct, why this disease goes into complete remission. Perhaps it could lead to a cure for similar diseases that are fatal.

Facing mortality can be frightening, but it can also be liberating. It reminds you what’s truly important. You also learn the importance of community, as you are forced to rely on others for help. It is in this spirit that I send out my prayers to a fellow writer Patry Francis. Patry Francis is the author of Liar’s Diary, a colorful murder mystery that has filled in the drab hours of waiting in uncomfortable hospital chairs. Patry is facing her own medical ordeal right now, diagnosed with an aggressive cancer just a few weeks before Liar’s Diary was due for its paper back release. In her blog Simply Wait, there is a glimmer of the awe and insight that mortal awareness brings. I hope her recovery is successful, and in the spirit of community I extend my support, for her health and her creative vision.

I will continue to carry my copy of Liar’s Diary with me, and as soon as I finish it, I will post again with a detailed review. But now I must get some sleep, an hour has slipped by since I started this post and my snuggly bundle of soap scented love has just fallen into a deep sleep.

The Dichotomy of Womanhood: Restraint or Interconnectedness

Thanksgiving—a holiday of feasting and family gathering. In my house, it’s also the weekend when we put up the Christmas tree and pull out that box of holiday cards. This is the time of year when we often follow the traditions instilled by our parents or establish new ones for our children. It’s a season that embraces gratitude for interconnectedness.

Perhaps it also has the power to color a master’s thesis. Although, it was a national holiday, a graduate student never sleeps. Well ok, I did get some sleep. But while I slept, visions of Cixous danced in my head.

While reading this weekend I came across this passage:

For “woman,” well imprinted with the sociocultural heritage, has been inculcated with the spirit of “restraint.” She is in fact “restraint” itself, socially. (Or, if you wish, the repressed, the controlled one.) She restrains herself, and is restrained, by a thousand bonds, hitched, conjugated, strings, chains, nets, leash, feeding dish, network of servile, reassuring dependencies. She is defined by her connections, wife of, as she was daughter of, from hand to hand, from bed to niche, from niche to household, woman as the complement-of-a-name has much to do to cut free.(Cixous 39)

In the margins I wrote, “independence vs. dependence—individual vs. communal?”

I understand Cixous argument. I often make Cixous argument. I insist on being defined by my own accomplishments, given the opportunity to establish my own identity. And though I did not realize it for most of my life, I was blessed by being (for most of my childhood) the only child of a single mother. Just as I was not defined as daughter of, I do not feel I am defined as wife of. My mother encouraged my independence; my options limited only by my imagination. I recognize now, that is why I have such a raging sense of self, why I have lived my life with almost a complete lack of restraint.

I will belay my tirade on how society still condemns such independent, self-defining women (usually with the singular term ‘Bitch’) and move on to the irony of independence.

Growing up without the excessive bonds, strings, and chains of “reassuring dependencies,” it was easy for me to identify with the masculine. This is what Maureen Murdock calls The Father Quest (The Heroine’s Journey):

During the second stage of the heroine’s journey a woman wishes to identify with the masculine . . . She puts on her armor, mounts her modern day steed, leaves loved ones behind, and goes in search of the golden treasure. She fine-tunes the skills of logos. She looks for clearly defined routes to success. She sees the male world as healthy, fun-loving, and action-oriented. Men get things done. This fuels her ambition. (Murdock 36)

But all of this ambition and independence often fuels competition and isolation. In our frustration, have we overlooked the benefits of interconnectedness? We’ve created a society in which women, as well as men, must be taught how to develop and maintain personal relationships in corporate workshops.

Perhaps, defining ourselves by our connections is an inherent strength of womanhood . . . if we are the ones doing the defining. When I wrote my personal mission statement two years ago, I was careful to include all of my roles: wife, mother, daughter (among others). . . roles that I seek to strengthen not to obliterate. In gaining certain “freedoms,” women are now free to redefine old relationships in new ways—viewing our multiple roles as a part of a network of reassuring interdependencies.
Works Cited

Cixous, Hélène. “Coming to Writing” and Other Essays. Ed. Deborah Jenson. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1991.

Murdock, Maureen. The Heroine’s Journey. Boston: Shambhala, 1990.

Are You an Active or Passive Reader?

I attended a variety of churches when I was a child: Catholic, Protestant, Nazarene, Baptist . . . and each had its own view on ‘the Word,’ ‘the Book,’ ‘the Gospel,’ the collection known as The Bible. Of all the experiences I had in those congregations, there is one that stands out in my mind, and it’s probably not one you would imagine.

One day, the esteemed leader of one of these denominations took a look at my crisp clean bible and asked, “Do you read this?”

“Yes, of course,” I responded.

“Then why does it look so new. Don’t be afraid to use it, really use it. Highlight passages that speak to you. Scribble notes in the margin. Bookmark pages.”

It was a revolutionary idea to a young girl. God was in the authorship, not in the binding. I was instructed to root around for meaning, for knowledge. The book I held in my hand was merely paper and ink. It was the philosophy, the ideas expressed on those pages that held true power.

To this day, I still highlight, scribble and bookmark everything I read. Nothing is sacred. As I read the essay “Coming to Writing” by Helen Cixous, I find a kindred spirit. For her, reading was an act of creation. The creation of meaning:

“Reading: writing the ten thousand pages of every page, bringing them to light. Grow and multiply and the page will multiply. But that means reading: making love to the text.”

Making love to a text is an interesting analogy. It begs the question “was it good for you?” If not, were you really into it or did you just lay back and wait for something astounding to happen. Are you being an active reader, or a passive reader? Are you afraid to defile the printed page or do you interact with it like the body of an intimate lover?

One of the keys to critical thinking is recognizing that letters clumped together in words, and words strung together on a page are still nothing more than ink and paper. We are the ones giving those words meaning. What we bring to a text will influence what we get out of it. As we grow, so does meaning—highlight, scribble, and bookmark. Nothing is sacred.

Feminism and SF: Reading with a Critical Eye

When I first started blogging back in May, my meanderings across the web lead me to Feminist SF—The Blog, a blog that questions the representation of women in Science Fiction.

Sci-Fi (or perhaps its now being called Speculative Fiction) is one of my guilty pleasures. Why is it my ‘guilty’ pleasure? Well as an English major, not many SF titles fall into academic reading, so anytime I read SF it’s purely self-indulgence. Since I often approach SF with an escapist frame of mind, I’ve never really looked at it with a critical eye before; much less explore the representation of women within the genre.

I have the ladies over at Feminist SF for raising my awareness. Armed with this new perspective, I was intrigued by excerpts of Nina Munteanu’s new novel, Darwin’s Paradox.

I discovered Ms. Munteanu’s blog, The Alien Next Door, about the same time I discovered Feminist SF. Her blog demonstrates a passion for science, the environment, and for the evolution of a cooperative coexistence, a combination I found quite captivating.

Munteanu’s most recent SF book, Darwin’s Paradox, incorporates all of these elements along with strong female characters, as the excerpts found on darwinsparadox.com illustrate.

Having just finished Darwin’s Paradox, I would be interested in hearing what the women over at Feminist SF think of it. Tomorrow (Monday, November 19), I will be posting my review of the book, followed by an interview with the author on Tuesday.

Podcasts: Literary News and Publication Buzz

 

Ooops. Sorry I fell into the black hole of my master’s thesis again. Right now I’m on a grueling reading schedule that is making it difficult to find a little writing time. All of this academic reading also makes it difficult to keep up with current literary news. If it wasn’t for the occasional tidbits I glean from wordsy.com, I’d have no idea what was going on in the publishing world.

 

In fact, listening to the weekly Wordsy podcast really opened my eyes to everything I’m missing. While downloading their recent podcast on iTunes, I decided to search for other book related podcasts. What I discovered was a bibliophiles dream.

Almost everyone is podcasting, from Havard University Press to The New Yorker. (Well, now I’m really glad Hans gave me the chance to get that first interview under my belt.) Even iTunes produces a “Meet the Author” podcast.  

Since I have an iPod, I download my favorite podcasts through the iTunes store and I can take them with me. Subscribing is not only easy, it’s free. Now I can stay on top of all of the latest reviews and interviews without adding to my already over-taxed reading list. Don’t worry, you don’t need an iTunes account or an MP3 player, you can also access the podcasts directly from the producer’s website.

 

As always, I wanted to share this little discovery with my readers. Perhaps many of you already know about them, but if you’re as clueless as I was, well then, I present some of my favorites with a little bow on top. Yes, they are that good:

 

Harvard University Press: Off the Page with . . .

The New Yorker: Fiction

NPR: Book Tour

Princeton University Press Podcasts

Washington Post Book World

BBC World Book Club

 

Enjoy!

Creative Circles: Picasso, Matisse, Stein and Hemingway

If you study art history or literature, then I am sure you have noticed an interesting reoccurance: the creative circle. Study any period and you will find like-minded individuals gathering together, later becoming the creative force of their generation. While studying modernism, I recently made the following observation that I thought I would share with you. After reading this little piece and how these individuals influenced each other, ask yourself, “who’s in my creative circle?” If you don’t have one, build one. You have a lot to learn from, and contribute to, the creative lives of others.

Thanks to Gertrude Stein and her brother Leo, 27 Rue de Fleurus was the hub of modernist art and literature from 1903 – 1914. Steins Parisian address became a gathering spot for painters like Picasso and Matisse, as well as expatriate writers like Hemingway. The influence of this creative atmosphere is evident in the cross germination of ideas found in the works of those who passed through 27 Rue de Fleurus.  

When comparing the works of Stein and Hemingway, one can see the influences of Picasso and Matisse respectively. During her residence at 27 Rue de Fleurus, Stein began to experiment with a technique known as “verbal collage,” as evident in her collection Tender Buttons. It was also a period in which Hemingway began to utilize the “iceberg technique.”   Both of these writing techniques mirrored artistic movements of the period. 

Stein’s “Picasso” is an example of this “verbal collage.” Utilizing a few primary words and images, Stein arranges and rearranges them to create linguistic texture. Stein was interested in word association and sound, cutting and pasting syntax together to create works that mirrored Picasso’s Collage Phase.  According to American Poet Judy Grahn, Stein’s work during this period focused on six elements:

1. Commonality
2. Essence
3. Value
4. Grounding the continuous present\
5. Play
6. Transformation

 In “Picasso,” Stein manipulates nouns like “one,” “something,” and “meaning” as well as verbs like “following,” “working,” and phrases like “coming out of” to create juxtaposing images just as Picasso did with his cubist collage. In fact, Stein breaks from her pattern of rearrange these words only long enough to expose the true nature and intent of cubist collage: 

This one was always having something that was coming out of this one that was a solid thing, a charming thing, a simple thing, a clear thing, a complicated thing, an interesting thing, a disturbing thing, a repellant thing, a very pretty thing. 

In this sentence Stein captures the reaction of those viewed collage, on canvas and on paper. Cubist collage was an attempt to capture reality from all angels at once, to represent three dimensions on a two dimensional surface. It was an art form that had the effect of being both charming and simple, and complicated and disturbing.Hemingway, on the other hand, seems to have taken his artistic inspiration from Matisse. Matisse and Picasso were both friends and rivals. One of the distinguishing aspects of their work can be found in the source of their inspiration. Picasso worked mainly from his own imagination while Matisse drew his inspiration from nature. The same distinction can be made between Stein’s “Picasso” and Hemingway’s “Hills Like White Elephants.”  

While “Picasso” utilizes the abstract sound and meaning of language to create an impact on the reader, “Hills Like White Elephants” uses setting and interpersonal dialogue to create an impression.  

During the period of Gertrude Stein’s Paris salon, Matisse favored bright colors, flat shapes, and controlled lines, in a style that was expressive but lacking in detail. This is a description that could also be applied to Hemingway’s “Hills Like White Elephants.”  

Hemingway opens the story with a description of the natural surroundings: “The hills across the valley of the Ebro were long and white. On this side there was no shade and no trees . . .” (Hemingway 613). From this description, the reader visualizes a sweeping block of color. The later comparison to white elephants is very expressive, but still lacks detail.  

Even the conversation is expressive yet controlled as the two main characters discuss the very controversial topic of abortion, while avoiding the word, the details of the operation, the baby, or their relationship. Like his descriptions of the landscape, Hemingway’s dialogue merely focuses on blocks of color:

The girl looked at the bead curtain. “They’ve painted something on it,” she said. “What does it say?”

“Anis del Toro. It’s a drink.”“Could we try it?”

The man called “Listen” through the curtain. The woman came out from the bar.

“Four reales.”

“We want two Anis del Toro.”

“With water?”

“Do you want it with water?”

“I don’t know,” the girl said. “Is it good with water?”

“It’s alright.”

“You want them with water?” asked the woman.

“Yes, with water.”

“It tastes like licorice,” the girl said and put the glass down.

“That’s the way with everything.”

“Yes,” said the girl. “Everything tastes like licorice. Especially all the things you’ve waited so long for, like absinthe.”

(Hemingway 614)

On the surface this dialogue creates a sweeping visual of two individuals ordering drinks. Note that Hemingway leaves out the detail of the waitress going back inside the bar and returning with the drinks. The dialogue moves from her confirmation that they do indeed want water to the girl drinking the Anis. It is also important to note that absinthe was a drink writers and artists associated with romance. This gives the dialogue new meaning that is not evident on the surface. The exchange emphasizes the experience of the man and the inexperience of the girl. It is also significant that the couple waters down the Anis, giving an indication of the nature of their relationship. The girls agreement that all things initially taste like licorice (especially when you wait a long time for it) indicates the awareness that this initial thrill does indeed dull.  Works Cited: Grahn, Judy, ed. Really Reading Gertrude Stein: A Selected Anthology with Essays by Judy Grahn (Crossing Press, 1989). Hemingway, Ernest. “Hills Like White Elephants.” The Norton Anthology of Short Fiction. Ed. R.V. Cassill. New York. W.W. Norton & Company. 1981. 

Stein, Gertrude. “Picasso.” Portraits and Prayers. New York: Random House, 1934.

Sexual Politics and Mrs. Dalloway

When I left my corporate job to stay at home with my toddler, some of my peers felt I was taking the easy way out, or assumed I was leaving because I just couldn’t hack it in the real world. The truth is my job just wasn’t helping me fulfill my personal mission statement. I found it difficult to manifest my values in that environment, so I did something about it.

It amazes me how there is still this underlying tension between career moms and stay at home moms. Wasn’t the feminist movement about allowing women a choice?

In one of my graduate courses, we’re currently discussing Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf. Some of the students find the character offensive, the epitome of everything the feminist movement is against.

At this point, I feel I should stop and ask, why does feminism have to be against anything? Shouldn’t feminism be about helping women achieve their own goals? You may argue: but what about issues like spousal abuse? As women, shouldn’t we be against that? I don’t see anything wrong with the cause, only the perspective.

When Mother Theresa was asked to join an anti-war march, she said, “No, but when you have a peace march, I’ll be there.”

Of course, I agree women should not be pummeled at the hands of their spouses. But rather than being anti-abuse, shouldn’t we be pro-education, empowering women with the knowledge that they are valuable members of society. A proud woman won’t let anyone beat her.

But I digress, back to Virginia Woolf. In discussing the novel, the professor posed this question:

“In her ground breaking 1978 work SEXUAL POLITICS, Kate Millett attacked Virginia Woolf for having “glorified two housewives, Mrs. Ramsay [the protagonist of To The Lighthouse] and Mrs. Dalloway….” Show why you think this criticism is or is not appropriate.”

The questioned incited feminist debate. For some, Mrs. Dalloway is the story of a silly woman concerned with flowers and a dinner party. Others recognize how conflicted the character really is.

As I researched my response, I returned to this passage in A Room of Ones Own:

“[I]t is obvious that the values of women differ very often from the values which have been made by the other sex; naturally, this is so. Yet it is the masculine values that prevail. Speaking crudely, football and sport are ‘important’; the worship of fashion, the buying of clothes ‘trivial.’ And these values are inevitably transferred from life to fiction. This is an important book the critic assumes, because it deals with war. This is an insignificant book because it deals with the feelings of women in a drawingroom.”

As I read this passage, I pondered contemporary literary criticism. Has anything really changed? The assumption that stay at home moms simply lack ambition seems to suggest that the values Woolf defined as “feminine” may still be viewed as trivial. Unfortunately, career moms illustrate how men are not the only ones capable of dismissing these values. In the 21st century, women who choose to honor “feminine” values can find themselves trivialized by both men and women. So much for empowering women to make their own choices.

Effective Peer Reviews

“So what do you think?”

What a loaded question. It can be the most effective tool in the pursuit of publication, or it can be the beginning of bitter contention. It all depends on the readiness of the writer asking the question, and the ability of the critic to assess that level of readiness. I’ve learned this from personal experience.

I’ve enjoyed work shopping material with fellow writers on a couple of online communities. I believe the critical feedback I receive is absolutely essential to my future as a published author. I even credit it with the honorable mention I received in a recent writing competition. But, challenging an artist without offending can be tricky.

I have been criticized for being both too extensive and too vague. This has taught me to spend as much time assessing the readiness of the writer, as I do analyzing their work. Only a few months ago, I inadvertently offended another writer with a critique that was intended to challenge the author’s literary technique. However, when the author retaliated on a personal level, it became obvious that I had underestimated his readiness to receive such extensive feedback.

Overcompensating, my critiques became brief and somewhat vague. I became more concerned with the ego behind the writing than the writing itself. That is, until just a couple of days ago when a fellow writer reminded me that this minimalist approach was of no use. He advised me to address issues in greater detail and sight specific examples. After clarifying his expectations, I was able to reassess his ability to receive a thorough review.

So, how can you determine an author’s readiness level? First, see if you can locate any of her critical feedback. How they review others is a good indication of her ability to analyze literature and her ability give and receive constructive criticism. What is the general atmosphere of the writing community she most participates in? This is where she feels comfortable and successful. This will give you an indication of the kind of feedback she is accustomed to. Finally, assess her motivation. You can do this directly, before supplying your critique. Ask her what they hope to achieve from the critique? What is her ultimate goal as a writer? Does she have any particular concerns about the piece you will be reviewing? If you receive vague answers, it’s probably an indication of a low readiness level.

It’s also a good idea to come up with a feedback form that will allow you to give specific, consistent feedback. I found this one for creative writing on the University of Hawaii website:

Paraphrase the plot of the story in one or two sentences.

Paraphrase the theme of the piece in one or two sentences.

Describe the narrator’s point of view. Is the point of view consistent? If not, where and how does it shift?

Describe the tone of the piece. Is the tone consistent? If not, point out where it wavers.

Are the characters believable? Why or why not?

What more would you like to know about the characters?

Were there any parts of the story that were confusing or unclear?

If the writer uses dialogue, is it clear who is speaking? Does the writer describe how the speaker says the dialogue?

Has the writer dramatized rather than summarized the experiences in the story?

What parts of the piece are most vivid for you?

What questions did you have when you finished reading the piece?

Anything else?

At Zoetrope.com a sample review for poetry utilized this format:

Overall Quality:

Originality:

Communication of Theme:

Structure:

Diction (well-chosen words):

Imagery (type/structure):

Use and function of Sound repetition:

These are merely examples, of course. You can develop your own based on the goal of your peer reviews. I recommend sharing your evaluation form with your peers when you first begin working togather. This will give the author a clear idea of what you will be assessing and prepare him for the extent of your feedback. (The author’s reaction to your form may also cause you to re-evaluate his readiness level.)

By evaluating both the writer and their work objectively, you will have a better chance of developing productive peer review relationships, while avoiding the backlash of accidentally bruising someone’s ego.

Traveling with a Literary Focus

“—That time has past,
And all its aching joys are now no more,
And all its dizzy raptures. Not for this
Faint I, nor mourn nor murmur; other gifts
Have followed; for such loss, I would believe,
Abundant recompense. For I have learned
To look on nature, not as in the hour
Of thoughtless youth; but hearing oftentimes
The still, sad music of humanity . . .”

(Lines Composed A Few Miles Above Tintern Abbey ln. 83-91)

————————————————————————————————————-

My passion for literature extends beyond the bindings of books. For me, literature is the creative expression of thought and the culmination of experience, and just as literature should be debated and discussed, it should also be lived. Although we can’t go back in time, we can often bring our experience into closer alignment with the original work.For instance, one can go to a Shakespeare play, or one can go to a Shakespeare play in the Globe Theatre in London, standing in the pit during a production of King Lear. I had the opportunity to do just that when I was an undergraduate student. By participating in a six week study abroad program, I was not only able to live among the locals and gain a new perspective of our global community; I was able to spend my weekends exploring a country rich with literary history.

Along with excursions to Stonehenge, Salisbury, and the medieval town of Lavenham, I had the opportunity to explore Westminster Abbey, the Cathedral in Canterbury, and the white cliffs of Dover.

One weekend, I even laced up my hiking boots and headed to Wye Valley, home to Wordsworth’s famous Tintern Abbey. After spending the night in a local castle (conveniently converted into a hostel), three friends and I set out for the Abbey at the opposite end of the valley. The hike took all day, with a stop for a plowman’s lunch at a local pub.

Of course, the hike itself was not planned. Let’s just say we found transportation in Wales a little less ‘consistent’ then it was in London, and being impatient young folk, we started to walk. It was a rather serendipitous decision, however. What better way to become acquainted with the natural theater that surrounds Tintern Abbey? We would have missed so much arriving by bus or taxi.

I imagined, as we walked, the journey of Wordsworth through the same countryside. The slower pace allowed time for contemplation, creating an experience that was poetic in its own right. As Wordsworth says, “poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings . . . emotion recollected in tranquility.”

Thanks to that summer in England, Tintern Abbey is not just a Romantic poem, but a place that lives in my own memories.