I spent the past one and a half months teaching two English summer classes.

In my English Plus class, I asked a female nursing student what she intended to do after graduation.

"I plan to go to abroad, Sir," she replied.

"So you plan to go abroad." I answered, indicating by my inflection that the preposition "to" should not stand in the way of her going abroad.

"Exactly where do you intend to go?" I asked.

"London, Sir," she replied with a grin on her face.

"So, you're going to England," I followed up.

"No! To London, Sir" she answered, looking all confused.

I knew as far back as when I was a sophomore in a public high school over thirty years ago that something was going wrong, when my substitute English teacher who majored in PE remarked before our class composed mostly of honor students: "It is depends... It's up for you."

That triggered that high school's first ever student strike.

In my other English summer class, a graduating commerce student wrote that he was fond of collecting "wrisk watches".

He's set to join the rest of his family in the US this June.

I wish him luck -- lots and lots of it.

[May 31, 2006]