The sun also rises (or does it raise?)

Today my class and I tackled four of the most confusing verbs in the English language: lie, lay, rise, and raise. Ok, I will admit that I have to use notes every time I teach these verbs. "Lay" is the past tense of "lie," not to be confused with the present tense verb "lay," which is a completely different verb. I drew lovely pictures on the board to help them remember, pictures of suns, chickens, and stick people. These pictures will most likely give them nightmares tonight, after they lie down and watch the moon rise.

To help solidify this lesson in the minds, I asked them each to write a cohesive paragraph that included all four verbs at least once in any tense they chose. Some were very creative (and yes, one student wrote about chickens).

One student wrote a poem. With his permission, I share it with you:

I lay down wishing my love, for you will rise

as beautiful as an emanating sunrise

I've lain dreaming of how our love has risen.

Feels like just yesterday, your lips I was kissing.

By the way, English is this student's second language. True, he didn't get all four verbs in there (I'm not telling you which two he missed. You'll have to figure that one out yourself), but I was still impressed. Most students would groan if I asked them to write a poem. This one asked for special permission to write a poem rather than a paragraph.

If you're looking for an original poem for your sweetheart this Valentine's Day, you may consider commissioning one from him.