Saturday, May 13, 2023

Oxford: building a longer table

I absolutely love when I can bring my old life and my current life together. 

Today we went to Oxford and my students got to meet my old profs. Lectures, Q&A, a long pub lunch at a suitably long table... my heart is full. 

A couple of students said they'd like to do graduate school at Oxford/in the U.K. I love being able to help--even a little bit--to nudge open the door from our small bubbles into the world.

What we read: papers by Robert and Will because we were meeting them. And also--thanks NGS--extracts from R.F. Kuang's Babel because it's set in Oxford and is about translation and colonialism.

Pic: Profs and students at The Royal Oak. A colleague brought their adorable 13-year-old doggie to lunch... and I had to quickly blink away tears because I started imagining Scout making it to 13.  I miss everyone at home right now, and I think some part of me thinks he'll be there when I reunite with the rest of the family in ten days.

4 comments:

Nicole said...

Hugs, Maya, it will be hard for a while, missing Scout. You'll miss him forever but one day it will get easier. It doesn't seem like it will, but somehow it does. I know this so well.

StephLove said...

How nice you got to reconnect with your old professors.

I still notice when I come home from a trip and Xander's not meowing at me. He's been gone since October. Don't they say grief is the price you pay for love? But Nicole's right, it gets gradually better.

maya said...

Thanks, Gillian.

Thanks, Nicole and StephLove. You both are in that first year of grief too <3. I truly felt your pain and sympathized when you lost Barkley and Xander--but I think I understand it only now.

Sarah said...

Feminism in action-- love this.

Corinth, Epidaurus, Mycenae, Nafplio

I've even had students named after Greek philosophers before, but oh--the thrill of hearing "Aristotle!" or "Chimera!...