I love epiphanies…one second I’m just daydreaming away,
and the next second: BAM! Epiphany pulls me from my reverie and reminds me
of something tremendous that was lurking in the back of my mind. I tell you
this because one such epiphany visited me in my second year at Carthage, and I still have that feeling of unmitigated joy today. A couple springs ago, I was making
my daily morning trudge up the little hill from the parking lot and thinking to
myself, “Hmm…if I could be anywhere
right now…” The answer came instantaneously: I would be right here! Such is the nature of my life at Carthage. I don’t
think I’ve ever worked harder in my life, and I love it.
Most of my life, things in academia came easily to me. It was not until my dissertation work that I actually faced struggle and frustration in school. (No, PE class does not count!) Now though, I wonder if things came easily to me because I did not get as much out of the experiences as I could have/should have. How much more would I have learned, had I chosen to go above and beyond? It's not that I was lazy--anything but that! We Baylis and Kenny women are of good stock: strong work ethics! Like Larry the Cable Guy, we "get 'er done!"
I'm a "real" professor now. I am an assistant professor of education. I AM A PROFESSOR!! How the flip did that happen? This concept just amazes me--I'm a college professor! I'm teaching and I can't stop! I am always thinking, always revising plans in my head, always taking notes on ideas for the next time I teach the course--all sorts of behaviors that I never used when I taught special ed for 16 years. I am so blessed. Every year I fall in love with my students. Sometimes, luckily, blessedly, amazingly, they fall in love right back with me. There's an almost audible, visible hum of energy when everything clicks--I've found my way into their minds and they welcome me there! My students teach me so much more than I can ever dream of teaching them. I learn and grow every single day. And I get paid to do this. To quote The Sound of Music: "Somewhere in my youth or childhood, I must have done something good!" Good night.
