Yes yes, I know. If I tell you how much I love the people in our department again you’ll rip out my coccyx and shank me with it.

But. I love the people in our department.

Take Nick, for example, one of our darling freshmen with a passion for Eliot. He took Creative Writing on an excursion to the sunny patch of slick green grass and wildflowers (real life is allowed to take liberties with clichés) and spirited us away to the world of “The Waste Land,” “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock,” and an excerpt from “Four Quartets.”

The sun reflected white against the paper, framing everything in a quixotic light. Nick read through the selections unhurriedly, his cadence posing a striking complement to the weather, bringing about not lethargy, but utter entrancement that kneads at your cerebrum, pressing in indents, impressions you know will remain for the rest of your life.

At least, it’s not something I’ll soon forget. Eliot, combined with Nick, had a very regal way of commanding attention. Thank you very much, Nick, for sharing this intimate part of you with us. I’ve read parts of “The Waste Land” before and liked it fine, but you brought fresh, almost cinematic intricacies to the poetry. Mykel said it best, I thought, that this entire experience left us “feeling like a Fellini film.” I really hope sharing our favorite poetry becomes a Creative Writing tradition, because sometimes, the reverent way a person treats a poem he or she likes can be far more intimate and bonding than any community day activity.

Tomorrow, we continue with our Students-in-Residence classes. The one and only Jules Cunningham will be sharing his aptitude for songwriting, and senior Alex Pollack will take over on Thursday with a poet yet to be determined.