Garden Goddess

I've been spending as much time as possible in my garden. We've been putting a new deck on the back of our house, which will expand our outdoor living space quite a bit. It's been a bit chaotic back there, but it is nearing completion and peace will return soon. I've been planting and nurturing lots of flowers, which is a little different for me. I'm hoping to attract more butterflies and hummingbirds with the colorful and fragrant perennials I've been putting in. My fingernails almost always have a telltale line of rich soil under them. Toenails, too, since I usually garden barefoot. There are few things on this earth that make me happier than digging in dirt!

I come by this passion honest...my mom is a garden goddess, too. We share observations, updates on growth and development, sightings of interesting wildlife, and the plants and seeds that populate our little patches of earth. For both of us, our gardens are oases, places of retreat and renewal...and fun. Sharing time in our special places is important to both of us. Some of the best parties I've been to have been in my mom's backyard, and in my own. With the hot tub and the new deck, our place will be ready for celebrations!

Welcome to the wonderful world of online learning!

Well, my course is up and running, and now it's time to work out the inevitable bugs. There aren't too many to deal with, but any bug is one too many for a student, especially during the shortened summer term! We're working on it, though, so my hope is everything will be resolved shortly.

Yesterday evening I met with the 365 Project folks to discuss our visioning process. Our little ad hoc group will be exploring our collective future with a consultant so we can figure out where we go from here. Each of has a slightly different agenda...mine is mostly about trying to address the education gap in the local school system. I have to say that working with this group, which is mostly composed of people with whom I grew up, has been a blessing and a joy. No matter where we ultimately take it, the 365 Project has been a good experience for me.

I love the way the different parts of my life intersect and interrelate! The 365 Project, the online course in mixed race women's stories, even my work administering the grant are all threads that are woven into the same cloth.

Are We Ready Yet?

Right now I'm sitting in an institution-wide meeting, learning about our readiness to welcome new and returning students to campus in just over a month. Even though I'm not functionally involved in any of the preparations, I find that my knowledge of higher education operations is significant, and I have much to contribute to the conversation. In my role as a bureaucrat, I know lots more about funding and the logistical ends of things than I used to, but my real mission, as I've just related to a colleague, is equity. Teaching is more a labor of love for me, while my work as a grants administrator is mostly just labor. My credo has always been "Stimulating work that does good," and while the actual work I do right now is not all that stimulating, the outcomes of this work are so vital.

Excited!

I've been busy amassing resources and materials for my latest course, and learning the new course management system through which it'll be delivered. I'm excited about having a formal venue for the exploration of a topic so near and dear to my heart.

As I review and ready these materials, I've been reflecting on the ways in which race is minimized in our world, and yet nearly everything is predicated upon it. I believe that race matters. Doesn't matter what you call it (a social construct or a biological reality), but it has an impact on everyone's life in some way, whether one knows it or not. I'm wondering how my students will engage with that notion. As a diverse group, there's bound to be divergent experiences of race. Where will we find our common ground? It all remains to be seen, and is part of the excitement I feel as I prepare for Saturday and the first day of class.