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LÝCEUM LIFE We sat down with Professor Rogers to talk about his life and experience at the Lýceum. Our Librarian told us about his passions, favorite Slovak words, books, calligraphy, and much more. Enjoy! 1. How did you get involved in calligraphy? Throughout my growing-up years, I worked in my father’s print shop. Some of my tasks involved working with typefaces. This work enhanced my awareness of the structure and spacing of letterforms. Later, in college, a friend of mine had a calligraphic fountain pen with interchangeable nibs in various sizes. I was so fascinated by this pen that I bought one for myself. It became my favorite pen for all purposes, including drawing letters and doodling during classes. Soon, calligraphy was both my hobby and a bit of an obsession. When I graduated from college, it was the single most marketable skill I possessed. 2. Some of us know you are a cat person. Why is that? Many things in life go back to childhood experiences, don’t they? My family always had cats while I was a child, but we never had a dog. I enjoyed the cats’ different personalities and temperaments. A cat’s almost purr always calms me down. And cats generally are much more portable than dogs. I also suspect I recognized kindred qualities between myself and many cats. We are both independent but gregarious; we love a good meal followed by a luxurious nap; our ambitions are idiosyncratic and not immediately discernible to others. We sometimes become fascinated by bright, shiny, quickly-moving objects. And we both have an inherent need to balance our friendly instincts with significant quantities of time alone. Also, cats seem to recognize me as one of their own. 3. At what point in your life did you answer the call to come to Slovakia? Calligraphy clients have kept me busy since I was in college, and for 30 years I had my own calligraphy studio in the Washington, DC area. I still do occasional projects for long-time 08 <strong>ELOQUENT</strong> clients in the USA. I also wrote and edited for both print and web publication. But beyond those enterprises, my most recent employment was scoring essays that students wrote for standardized graduation tests throughout the United States. I did this work under the auspices of companies that secured contracts with various state departments of education. One very interesting project involved listening to and scoring spoken responses from second-language learners. For another project, I even scored essays written in Hawaiian. 4. What is your favorite Slovak word? You already know the answer to this, right? I know this word from the song “V dolinach”: brieždenie, meaning “daybreak.” Often, when I sing the song, I substitute this word with the name Brezhnev. It still amazes me when students laugh at this silliness. But as long as they do, I will continue to sing it like that. 5. How do you like life in Slovakia? I enjoy life; I love Slovakia. Together—what a combo! 6. How many foreign languages do you speak? That’s a flattering question with a disappointing answer. English, of course, is not foreign to me: I speak it like the native I am. I took four years of German in high school and loved it. My teachers were all young native speakers, and they were wonderful people. I memorized some German poetry at that time and have carried most of it around in my head ever since. Text memorization is one of the things I enjoy most about language learning. Over the years, I have spent hours reciting poetry and talking to myself in German just for the fun of it. That has helped me not lose all of it. So, I speak some German.
LÝCEUM LIFE 7. What is your favorite book? Is it available in the library? It is impossible for me to name a single, favorite book. Many favorites come to mind, from The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence to James Thurber’s The Thurber Carnival. Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason–of which I have read only a few pages–would be fun for a while if I could have it in both English and German with appropriate dictionaries. In fact, dictionaries are among my favorite books. I would mention dozens more, if I could remember their titles. But designating a favorite book is impossible. However, I have sometimes heard a similar question that I CAN answer: What book would you choose if you had to be completely alone for the rest of your life with just that one book? This question is much easier to answer. Many people say they would choose the Bible. I, however, would choose a hymnal—like the Lutheran Book of Worship. It contains lots of scripture —including all the Psalms--but it also has plenty of music and liturgy. I would wear it out much faster than a Bible, because I would give it a lot more use. Many of my favorite hymns are not in the LBW, though. And the LBW is not in the lyceum library. Of the other books I mentioned, only The Thurber Carnival and various dictionaries are in the library. 8. What do you like the most About Christmas? Uh-oh. When it’s over. I would prefer to spend the month before Christmas in a quiet, contemplative refuge, like the guest quarters of a monastery. I would spend the week afterward the same way and not emerge until New Year’s Day. I won’t lament here the commercialization of Christmas—this is such a common complaint. But Christmas is a time when I especially enjoy solitude and silence, and not the ubiquitous noise of seasonal sound tracks. 9 What is the most beautiful Christmas present you have ever gotten? Hmmm. Probably quality time with friends and family. Or a solitary, reflective moment far from commotion and noise. 10. What do you think about Lyceum students? Lol. I love ‘em. I enjoy the variety of personalities and their sense of humor. They are the reason I stay here. 11. If you compare the gymnazium in Košice where you taught before coming here to the lyceum, what differences between the two schools spring to mind? Which place do you like more and why? There are quite a few differences that come to mind: The gymnazium in Kosice offers more foreign language options (French and Russian in addition to English and German). Some days, we would sing a song in five different languages in the same class. That was always great fun. On the other hand, the Lyceum has many more teachers who are native speakers of English. This means we have outstanding collegiality and support here as well as a more pervasive sense of community. Unfortunately, it also means there is less motivation for us to learn to speak Slovak or to interact more deeply with the local culture. Another important difference is that administrative leaders at the Lyceum speak and teach in English—a really great benefit—whereas some of the gymnazium leadership was less advanced and couldn’t understand nearly as much. Further, the lyceum has a well-stocked—perhaps even overstocked—English-language library. The gymnazium library was much smaller and was officially open for only twenty minutes per week. Kosice’s old town seems quite authentic and intact—a wonderful setting in which to live and work. Bratislava, however, offers English-language churches (none in Kosice) and weekly English-language Bible study groups. Both schools have outstanding students, and I have treasured my colleagues in both places. I would not remain in Slovakia so long if it were not for the people here. I enjoy each city for different reasons; I don’t see them as rivals. 12. What do you miss the most about the US? It seemed that I didn’t miss anything about the US until I went back for a visit. Then I realized that I miss two things: chain restaurants and automotive independence. I don’t necessarily mean fast food, like MacDonald’s or KFC. The US has many reasonably-priced restaurant chains with familiar, tasty menus (and unlimited, free refills on coffee!). I would love to have ready access to a Bob Evans restaurant or the great food and wacky décor of a Buca di Beppo. Even a Waffle House or International House of Pancakes would brighten my day. Tex- Mex or authentic Mexican food might be too much to hope for, but I can fantasize. As for automotive independence (having a car and the wherewithal to drive it whenever and wherever I wish), traveling back to the US and logging a thousand miles on a friend’s car reminded me of the exhilaration of the open road. I am reluctant to try driving here, although I wouldn’t mind an occasional road trip—especially if there were rest stops along the way with a 24-hour Waffle House. 13.Do you have a life motto? Do you live based on it? Many people have a life motto—often a scripture passage. These favorites probably should change occasionally- -evolving over a lifetime rather than stagnating with a single sentiment. That said, one passage I come back to over and over is in the book of Job: Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him. - Zuzana Obrancová <strong>ELOQUENT</strong> 09
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Page 4 and 5: ELOQUENT THE MAGAZINE OF EVANJELICK
Page 6 and 7: TURKEY PARTY ´15 LÝCEUM LIFE W e
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