I read with interest Kalpana's stories and Ruth's thoughts about Sally and feel compelled to add something of my own experience. I too, although not an English scholar, had some discussions on grammar and punctuation with Sally on a lesser scale. What I know is that Sally was not only a scholar, but an inspirational teacher. My son, David, who left College in 2000, was taught English by Sally and Kalpana. He loved his classes and they instilled in him a joy in English Literature which will endure for life. His love of the lessons was such that he considered studying for an English Literature degree, but it was Sally who advised him that perhaps he should stick to his science choice since he could always return to English later. He went off to university to study Molecular Biology clutching his copy of Hamlet and other books form his Literature course. Several times while at university he told me how much he missed his English lessons and wondered if he could find some leisure classes so that he could continue. Rest assured David is far from being a "nerd", but had simply been inspired. About 2 years ago Sally asked David to give some advice to Andrew concerning a talk he was giving on Genetics. David's response was that he had enjoyed his English so much and it was now pay back time. What a wonderful gift to give to a young person!
Fortunately I had told Sally all this. We often leave it too late.