Anziitu!

Sorry I haven't posted in a week. School started for me on Monday, and between AP classes, club business, driving lessons and a new job, I haven't quite been able to make time to post. (Well, that's not entirely true, but I'm utilizing the spare time I do have to meditate and catch up on sleep so my stress levels don't leave me with ulcers.)

GERUNDS

For those who are not familiar with the term, a gerund (in terms of the English language) is a verb with the ending -ing, used as a noun.

For example:

Plants make their own food by taking energy from sunlight and other sources and converting it into sugar.

Mary finds reading to be an enjoyable activity.

Now, let's take that second sentence about Mary, and translate it into Rijan.

Amaret penseva nin liezhka evovu* a shaaza imfita.

[lit. Mary thinks that reading is an activity enjoyable.]

*Gerunds in Rijan are ALWAYS masculine.

A Rijan verb is turned into a gerund by dropping the -m from the infinitive form and adding -zhka.

Avlazhka--Talking

Comozhka--Eating

Viziezhka--Seeing

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The -zhka ending is also used when talking about "this, not that." Rijan doesn't have a stand-alone word for not; a sentence is made negative by adding the prefix necht' to a conjugated verb. So, we have to rework the grammar to say "this, not being that."

For example:

Life is the future, not the past.

The verb being used is "to be." So the Rijan translation is, as is shown in my post about the Wizard's Rules:

Vikaza evova za batuula, necht'evozhka zu pazaad.

[Life is the future, not being the past.]

The verb doesn't necessarily have to be "to be," however:

Mary likes dogs, not cats.

Amaret imfitova hundai, necht'imfitozhka elyykai.

[Mary likes dogs, not liking cats.]