Back to the topic of my post...this past week was finals week at Saint Mary's so I started saying my goodbyes. On Friday the administrative assistant in my department organized a lunch for me with the chair of the department and other faculty members, and that was very nice. So often I only see the people I work with in the office, so it was nice to go out in a more social atmosphere. Then yesterday was the Saint Mary's College graduation, which I attended. I took part in the ceremony and got to dress up in the doctoral robe, hood, etc. (I really need to buy the official IU robe since that's where I got my Ph.D., but I can think of so many better things to spend money on! Those things cost about $600! Eeeks...) The ceremony was nice, although extremely chilly. All of the professors sat on stage under a big tent, so we weren't even getting the very few peeks of sunshine that came out over the two-and-a-half hours. It was really nice being on the stage to see all of my students as they walked by to get their diplomas, though. It was about 50 degrees out and most of us had on sandals because we knew it would be warm later. By the end of the ceremony my toes and fingers were completely frozen and I had to go back to my office and sit in front of a space heater for 10 minutes.
The graduation ceremony at Saint Mary's.All during finals week a lot of my students said to me, "You're coming to graduation, right?" and I could tell that graduation was a really big deal at Saint Mary's. I didn't realize why until after the ceremony was over, though. The celebrations afterwards are like nothing I've ever seen before! The entire campus is split up into "plots" and the graduating seniors all have a plot either by themselves or with friends. Their families bring in tables, chairs, food, drinks, and some even had bands or DJs! It really reminded me of a much more refined IU tailgating party! Karl and I walked around all day saying hello to students, meeting their parents, accepting some food or a drink here and there... I was able to see most of my graduating seniors and also several of my juniors, who also came out for the occasion. It was the perfect way to say goodbye to most of them - in a much more informal setting than class, where we could all just kick back and laugh a little. Plus, the weather got much warmer and the sun came out. :)
Me with some of my wonderful students!That's all for now. I'm looking forward to going to South Carolina next week since I've never been there. More to come after that trip!
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