You know how they say, What once was old is new again?
Today I (re)visited Tufts University’s Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Development, site of my 2004-2006 MA studies. How lucky I am to have worked with such wise and caring teachers, who generously shared their time: over a cup of tea in Ball Square (thank you, Martha!); in the director’s office of my white knight, the Eliot-Pearson Children’s School (thank you, Maryann and Debbie!); to and from Powderhouse Square’s Dunkin Donuts (thank you, Chip!); and in the car of a friendly GTA passerby (thank you, David and girl whose name I can’t remember!).
I’ve assembled their valuable words of advice for us all to process and enact in real life. Their implicit meta-message: Don’t lose heart. The object lesson in this homecoming: Don’t lose people.
-Life has phases and cultures have orientations. Our youthful, Western passions may fade with time and/or never attain such manifestation/idealization elsewhere. Recognize and celebrate changes across the lifespan.
-Certain academic departments do value applied work and can allow young parents to survive.
-Activities should be evaluated in terms of their cost-benefit to professional and personal matters.
-Academia offers June, July, and August (plus Winter Break!). While you have to work hard eight months of the year, those three-ish months off are a beautiful thing. So is being paid to think…
-At certain academic departments, you can clearly understand expectations, affably negotiate politics, and ruthlessly set limits regarding work time and personal time.
-Writing time and personal time should be deliberately scheduled and conscientiously respected.
-It is important that the university not only appreciates but values your work. Without the attachment of meaningful value, people-pleasers must say “no.”
-Following your passion will lead you where you’re meant to go.
-Invoking your passion by asking “How does this relate to my key priority/area of interest?” should be regularly done so as to ensure both its pursuit and your sole participation in significant projects that advance your agenda.
-Appreciate contextual features that influence your work’s impact. Be realistic.
Also shared time with dear friends from back in the day, who have vitally remained my friends to this day, and don’t show signs of stopping. Thanks to old friends of friends (Tim), old friends (Jenn, Yali, Geetha, Erika, Kelli), old friends out of context (Meg, Meryl), newer friends out of context (Jinah), new friends (Christina, Emily, Julie, “Mussels”), and the old friends who will variously host and entertain me in the Big Apple (Laura, Jordan, Marci, Ed, Lucy, Meg, Happy, Waylon, Willie, the Griffiths, the Andersons, Arian, Krissy, Olive Joon, and Ivy Shireen).
Lately feeling like things are coming full circle… or like I’m on one of those spiral staircases, looping back to the origin, but happen to be up a level. Let it be so.
I’m old(er) but I’m new again.