23 September, 2007 | Leave a Comment
Happy first day of autumn! I love how the British always say autumn. Americans tend to say fall, which is just wrong. Autumn is such a beautiful word.
[For readers in the Southern Hemisphere, happy spring!]
The students are moving into the hall today! Right now out my window I can see a string of parental cars double and triple parked. [At least half of these cars are of the Mercedes/Beamer/Range Rover/Jaguar variety. Do you have to be rich to attend a London uni and live in hall? I have no idea. Thank goodness I don't have to pay rent on this place.]
Most London colleges start this week, including mine. Forget January — this is when the new year starts. This time of year is always very exciting for me. Autumn. School supplies. Beginnings.
The students moving into hall are all very young (18 and 19) and they look at me as if I’m ancient. They see me leave my room and I can tell they’re confused as to why I’m here and not in a nursing home or something. To them I am ancient, of course, and it’s a strange experience. Time passes so quickly. What has happened to all of the years in-between me moving into my first dorm and now? It’s like a flash of time. I feel slightly disconcerted by it, but at the same time I’d never want to go back to being 18 again. Not a chance. I look at these kids (I call them kids!) and I think of all the self-discovery they have ahead of them. I think of how difficult this will be. Of course, not everyone is obsessed with self-analysis and takes such a torturous view of the world as I do, but still. I wouldn’t want to be starting that process again. I’ve had to work damn hard to get where I am now.
As for my work in the hall, don’t expect any regular dispatches. I signed a confidentiality agreement and even without that, it wouldn’t be right to write about it. [I'm sure a whole lotta weird stuff is gonna happen. Uh-huh.]
So please enjoy your equinox — the night and the day being of equal length. Live it up! If you’re starting school (as a student or a teacher), best of luck. If you’re not starting school, you should still go out and buy some new pencils and pads of paper and a glue stick. Go on. It’s an important autumn ritual.
Next stop, winter.
Anglofille said @ 4:09 pm | academia |
