In the Curriculum: Me! On the Syllabus

I’M IN THE CURRICULUM. It would be impossible to convey the sheer delight I experienced when seeing that I am required reading material in a college course syllabus. Well, not I, but something I wrote. And while it’s not my first time in the curriculum, the thrill is divine because of the piece that’s been chosen.

One of my books has long been read by students of both neurology and family caregiving. It’s my first, Another Name for Madness, about our family’s struggle with my mother’s Alzheimer’s disease. And Dead Reckoning, the book I co-wrote on forensic science, has had its day in class, sometimes with me as the lecturer. Just yesterday, I corresponded with a college student about my book on red hair so she can cite the book in a paper. And then only two weeks ago, in the Bronx, I was talking to a room filled with public school principals, telling them about the joys of writing memoir. Each of those lovely people got a copy of The Memoir Project to take home. So, I’m no stranger to being in the schools.

But this. This is different. This is a recent piece of mine on marriage that includes a great deal about Jell-O — or is it a piece about Jell-O that includes a substantial helping on marriage? Either way, it is listed here, as part of a food-themed  college level English course. Me, I’m jiggly over it.

Here’s the piece. Enjoy.