Okay, I think I am back. I know this has been the topic of my last two or three serious blogs, so I'll leave it at that. In all reality, who knows when I will post again - but I am posting now!
The last few days have been whirlwind-y. 48 hours ago I had no idea where I would be working this summer or next semester. Consequently, I didn't know what my Fall classes would be either. And though I still have some decisions to make about classes (to prep for grad school or...not?), I am officially employed for the next year of my life and I am registered for most of my classes. Now to find a place to live for my senior year...
I did next week's reading for my critical theory class last night and I am feeling rather proud to be an English major. Martha Nussbaum's Cultivating Humanity argues for the literature's role in making a compassionate, respectful, and thoughtful person. As children we sing "Twinkle, twinkle little star. How I wonder what you are?" and an actual sense of wonder and mystery develops inside us. What does the star feel? Does the star have an inner life? The child develops compassion for the star and begins to employ the imagination to understand what the star must feel like, experience. This very act is formative. How many people do you know that take the time to understand the inner-life of someone who is different? This reading reignited my passion for education, for narrative, for the imagination. I am so thankful that my mother read to me as a child.
I am almost finished with Beloved, Toni Morrison's magical realist novel about an escaped slave, Sethe, whose murdered daughter comes back to haunt her. I'm all about it. I tend to take on the persona of whatever I am currently reading, so right now, everything is sorrowful and fantastic. In my mind, I describe everything as internally and metaphorically as possible. I just reached page 259 and, for the first time, received a physical description of one of the main characters. I hadn't realized that for the entire novel, I had no idea what she looked like. Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant.
Today: research, academic advising, reading, laundry, groceries, shower. And all before the AS new staff meet and greet at 5 pm. Rock on.
