Yesterday one of UMaine’s most influential members passed away. Today Facebook is humming with the voices of those who knew and appreciated him. On Thursday folks from around the globe will be raising steins to Honors College Dean Charlie Slavin. Thus far I’ve seen promises from Chicago, Atlanta, Florida, New Mexico, New Hampshire, South Korea, and Ireland.
This is what social media is for. This is why I joined the (then) Honors Program.
Posted in Journal |
Two years ago I was simultaneously wallowing and making the most of my singlehood. I was working a job with a very comfortable salary, amazing benefits, and lots of learning experiences (good and bad). The only thing that remotely directed my future was my job: equipping me with skills and intuition for greater and more fulfilling professional challenges.
This last weekend I was writing some of the best lesson plans I’ve ever imagined and planning an eight-year-old’s school lunch. My partner was bathing his three-year-old. Our new apartment was half unpacked and my savings account whispered, “Don’t do anything stupid. But I got you…for now.” I’m phasing out my responsibilities in Orono to start…who knows what in Portland.
At 29 years, life’s unpredictability has been delightful. Of course I’ve experienced tears, anger, frustration, confusion, and intense sorrow, but I can’t think of one event that hasn’t provided a lesson. After over a decade in one town, I’m in a new community and…it’s not as scary as it could be. Except for the job hunt, which is almost always scary, I’m excited to throw myself into the Portland scene. If wisdom feels this good in the first third of my life, what does it feel like in the last?
Tags: anxiety, awe, positive thinking, retrospection
Posted in New Endeavors |