Victory and Moving Boxes

I have completed all of the coursework of my master's program! Victory! I finished my last paper yesterday morning, sent it in, and then felt the weight of the world fall off my shoulders-- briefly. Then I remembered that now it's moving time, and I need to pack up my house in boxes, call for a carpet-cleaning, and schedule an inspection with Berkeley. But I'm done! I have nothing left to do for school save my thesis. Done, done, done!!! How absolutely crazy is that? I suppose some people may have felt this way around this time last year, but as I donned my cap and gown I knew I was in for another year of the worst sucker punches William and Mary could throw at me, and it did, but I survived intact! Intact, and arguably smarter about historical matters. A bit smarter about the world in general, too.

On Sunday all of my senior friends will graduate, and then I truly will no longer be a 'recent college graduate.' What a year it has been. I have met some incredible people, gone through some extreme highs and terrible lows, and read more than I ever thought possible. And now I'm turned ever more loose into the great world.

Another small victory: I got the research assistant position that I applied for! I'm helping a blind doctoral student read primary sources for her dissertation-- first I read them, then I put the relevant information into an electronic format she can access. I'm really excited about it; the hours are flexible, the pay is perfect for my needs, and I get to help out a student I really respect research a really interesting subject. Plus, no job-hunting, plenty of time to conduct my own research for my thesis, a summer off (to get a leg-up on that thesis), and the ability to travel! And believe me I plan to travel.

On a completely different note, yesterday the first thunderstorm of summer occurred. It was a real thunderstorm, with sheets of rain and lightening from the top of the sky to the ground. It was loud and evening fell as it lashed outside the house, and I laid on my bed and watched the sky turn yellow-gray outside my window. Then suddenly it stopped-- everything was quiet, the the light made everything in my room look almost black and white and sepia-toned. I felt like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, that quiet moment right after the house lands. I felt that I would open the door onto a new world full of technicolor.

"Where troubles melt like lemondrops... that's where you'll find me." And in a sense-- certainly academically, and hopefully on a personal level-- perhaps that exactly sums up summer. Perhaps, if I'm lucky, it can begin the rest of my life. A new world of color, adventure, people, experiences, friendships, the odd metaphorical Witch of the West, perhaps, but also a pair of ruby slippers to ensure that I always make it home safely. Someplace where there isn't any trouble. Do you suppose there is such a place, Toto? There must be.