Mē þyċþ iċ hēr sceolde reċan hū þæt iċ Englisc tō cōm, and hū iċ ġeleornaþ and nū ġiet leornie Englisc.
Ġif iċ þē mette, þā oncnēowest þū þæt iċ hæbbe hlēoðore lȳt uncūðe, forþǣm þe iċ lȳt ġespreċes lettunge hæbbe, swā þæt mīn hlēoðor folcum þynċþ þæt is fram Iurope ġecumen. Ac iċ būe on American, on þǣre Middanwestan dǣle. Iċ þōhte langum hwīle þæt hit menn ne līċode, ac iċ onfand þæt sum folc hit him līċode. Ac, iċ setde sumne Twāin on cyrcolwyrde, and þā iċ mīn hlēoðore ġehīerde, swilċe fram ōðerum menn hīeran, þā onġēat þæt mīn hlēoðor næs nā unfæġer nā unfrōfreliċ tō ēarum. Þæt ġeþōht wæs on mīnum hēafde ǣnliċ.
Swā, mīn sweoster mē sæġde, "For hwȳ ne fandast rǣdan þū hlūde ōðera bēċ? Þū sceoldest!" Swā æft iċ rǣde eall Ċauseres "Cantawarabyrġ Tala" hlūde, and mē līċode. Þæt tunge næs nā earfoðe nā unfæġer mē, and iċ wolde rǣdan þȳ māra. Lator mīn wīf ġēaf mē eac "Bēowulf" ; se wæs þā āwendunge Scæmus Heaniġ, mid þǣre Englic and Nīwenglisc andlang. Swā iċ rǣdde eall þā Englisc hlūde, and ne onġēat lȳt þā word, ac ġiet iċ him līċode. Þā stefn and mēter þæs lēoðes wæs mē ġelīċ þunore ofer muntas, hit tēah mīnum hēortan tō, þēah oft ne līċode mē sēo talu ; ne mē līċaþ nīedwracu lȳt.
Sōna æft iċ bōhte suma fiftiġ bēċ, be Englisc and Middanenglisc and ǣrliċum Nīwenglisc. And tōmiddes him wæs Popes "Seofen Englisc Lēoþ". And sōþlīċe on þǣre wæs "Eardsteppa", and iċ lufode þæt þȳ mǣst. Mē þūhte, and ġiet nū mē þynċþ, þæt þæt lēoþ byþ þȳ betst and grēatost on Englisc, þȳ mā, on ǣniġe Englisc tungan. Ac ġiet ne meahte iċ hit onġietan.
Swā þā belamp þæt iċ mē selfum setde þā Englisc tungan tō leornienne. Iċ borgode bōc be Englisc grammatiċcræfte fram biblioþeċan, and iċ fandode þā ġeweorc innan. Ac mē þūhton hīe lȳt weorþ ; ne hēoldon hīe mīn ġehyġd, and ne leornode iċ miċel. Iċ nū cann, þæt iċ næbbe nā þæt nīed inġehyġdes for swilċum þing. On mīn līfes eallum iċ næfde nā sōþliċ siġe on ġereordes leornunge, and nū ic cann wel þæt hit wæs þā wīse academiċe þā þe meċ ādwealde. On ċildes scōle iċ fandode leornian Espanisc, and þǣr næfde iċ nā siġe. Swā iċ þōhte ōðerne weġ tō fandienne.
Hēr nū iċ seteþ þā wīse mīne leornunge Englisc :
I. Finde sum lang bōc þe þē līċaþ wel.
II. Āwende þā bōc of Nīwenglisc Englisc tō.
III. Dō swā, be þǣm þe wrīte twā hund word on dæġe.
IV. Ġif word mann ne wite, þā bruce wordhord oþþe wordbōc for tō findenne.
V. Wrīte for selfum lȳtel grammatiċcræftes bōc, be handa.
VI. Dæġes ġehwilċe, sette tō sīde þæt þæt mann ġiesterdæġ wrāt.
VII. Ne bēo cariġ hwæðer þæt ġeweorċ fullfremed sīe.
Nū tō sweotolienne :
I. Finde sum lang bōc þe þē līċaþ wel - Mē þynċþ þæt sēo bōċ sīe sēofontiġ þusend word oþþe mā. And hēo sceolde þīn ġehyġd healdan, sum bōc þe þū wel ġerēord and cunst wel. And eac, mē þynċþ ieldran bēċ sīen þȳ selor, swā swā swilċa hæfþ læssan nīewword þe þū fremman scealst. Mǣt ǣniġ bōc þe of Ladine oþþe ieldan Greċe cymþ sīe gōd, oþþe maniġa bēċ þe ǣr 20ða hundġēar ġewriten wǣron.
2. Āwende þā bōc of Nīwenglisc Englisc tō - oþþe of Ladine oþþe sum ōðerum tunge. Þæt weorþ þing is þæt þū āwende TŌ Englisc, nā of Englisc Nīwenglisc tō. Ne mæġ mann þenċan on tunge on rihtliċum wīsan ġif se ne bruce þā tungan!
III. Dō swā, be þǣm þe write twā hund word on dæġe - ne þearfst þū wrītan twā hund word tō þǣm anginne. Þā iċ mīn ġeweorc underbegann, þā wrāt sum 10 oþþe 20 word on dæġe. Lator, þā þā þū hæfst trūwan þȳ mā, þā twā hund word sīe gōde miċelnesse. And þæt is þæt weorþ þing, nā fullfremmunge, ac miċelnesse.
IV. Ġif word mann ne wite, þā bruce wordhord oþþe wordbōc for tō findenne - iċ bruce þæt engli.sh lēaf for wordhorde, and eac þæt Enlisc Wordbōc. Ġif iċ sum word ne ġemune, oþþe his cynn, oþþe hū iċ sum word wyrcan sceolde, þā bruce iċ þās. Ne bēo iċ cariġ ġif iċ ne ġemune ; ne duge þæt ġeþōht nān.
V. Wrīte for selfum lȳtel grammatiċcræftes bōc, be handa - þēos helpode mē þȳ mǣst, mē þynċþ, swā iċ lȳt æft þorfte gān and findan on Webbe, and þus mīn dæġhwǣmliċ ġeweorc þōlode þȳ læssa. Hēo sceolde habban hire be wordum, namum, ġetælum, bīnaman, bīwordum, tōġeīeċendliċum namum, asw ; and swā hwǣt swā þū þearfst tō þīnum dæġhwǣmliċum ġeweorce be grammaticcræfte. And sōna, þēos bōc sīe ġewriten on þīnum ġehyġde.
VI. VI. Dæġes ġehwilċe, sette tō sīde þæt þæt mann ġiesterdæġ wrāt - lator þū meaht mearcian þā ǣrliċra word, ac nū, tōdæġe, sceoldest þū wrītan nīw word. Miċelnes māra þe fufremmunge.
VII. Ne bēo cariġ hwæðer þæt ġeweorċ fullfremed sīe - efne æft 50 þusend word þū sīe ġiet tō þǣm onginne þīnes færeldes. Lator is tīd for rihtmearcunge. Sōþlīċe þū sceoldest wyrcan heard, brucan eall þīnra tōla, and rǣdan ōðer þing þā þā þū hæfst ascunga. Ac þū sceoldst oncnāwan late þæt þīn ġeþōht be sumum worde, be sumum þinge on grammatiċcræfte, wæs wōh, and mid þȳ þū scealst leornian. And mid þȳ þū mæġ mearcian þīnne tyht. Ēaðe mæġ þū þenċst þæt þū onġietst forġiefendliċ and wrēġendliċ grammatiċcræft, ac late þū oncnāwst þæt þū ǣr ne dyde. Eall is wel, þis is eall ġewēned.
Sum ōðer þing:
Rǣde miċel and hlūde - sēo Englisc āwendung Geneses is gōd onġinn, and eac Apollonius se Tyrisc. And eac rǣde þīn āġen ġeweorc.
Wrīte selfcraniċ - be handa.
Ful ġemune lēoþ.
Þenċe tō selfum.
And sōþlīċe iċ bruce ōðera wīsan þe iċ nū beþenċan ne mæġ. Ealles þisses iċ bewrāt be Englisc leornunge, hit sīe eall wynnsum. Ġif ne sīe, þā gā dōn sum ōðer þing mid þīnum līfe ; hit is scort ġenōg.
--28 Winterfylleþ 2021