day 1, year 2

i love the students
i give thanks for the opportunity of having them ask me to speak into their lives
i value the privilege that i have to watch them learn and begin to lead others
i rejoice in the hearing of them gasp and oooh and awww in delight as they watch an unexpected chemical transformation occur (mixing 2 clearish solutions together --> bright green solution --> crystals!)
i smile as they realize and express dismay that they must then later dissolve their crystals

You see they are destroying these crystals in order that they may be made new through a slower recrystallization process that will not occur in front of their eyes within the span of 30 minutes, but instead while the beakers are tucked away for the next week in their lab drawers.
i know the crystals will form again and that they will be of higher quality and purity.  some of the students even realize this, but nonetheless they are mournful as they heat up and stir away the spiky green kryptonite looking crystals.

i love the transformations that i'm given a front row seat to observe. 
they don't often happen quickly, but with patience and hope i seek to see

saying good-bye to summer...

Today I'm saying good-bye to summer and tomorrow I'll be part of welcoming a new class of freshmen to Hope.

I embraced summer today and squeezed savoring each drop - I slept in, took Bella on a walk in the sunshine, went and sat by the lake reading while not wearing sunscreen, visited a local market buying veggies and yummy blueberries, grilled out dinner, pampered myself by taking a long shower and painting my toenails, and capped off the day with some juicy watermelon.  Not only has today been full, so has the summer and I thought I'd take a little bit of time to remember the highlights...

- mentored 3 undergrads working on my research - way more exhausting than i imagined, but so good in the long run :)
- bought a house, repainted the main living space, moved in, did lots of house projects...
- lots of fun visitors helping me choose paint colors and put up the paint
- visit from my parent helping me settle in to the new house
- trip to Ohio to meet up with friends from PA
- PA friends come to visit me in MI
- great birthday with those friends including 2 visits to the beach and capping things off with port
- 4th of July picnic at my new place and then watching fireworks over Lake Mac
- lost and lots of grilling in my new backyard - one of my favorite features of my new place (it is hooked up to the house gas!)
- had students over a couple times for dinner and games
- gained a roommate to join Bella and I in the new house
- saw the final Harry Potter movie when it opened at midnight
- had a birthday party for a 4 year old
- had a onesies painting party for a baby on the way
- received funding to purchase a scanning probe microscope!
- watched my students present talks and posters and they did an excellent job
- drove to Alabama - visited with family and friends
- drove to Florida - meet my new nephew! visited my bro and sil, went to Disney and Cocoa Beach
- drove back to Alabama
- drove back to MI (probably won't do that type of driving trip again)
- flew out to Santa Barbara to visit two different companies that sell the microscope i'm buying
- got to put my feet in the Pacific and then eat on the deck of a restaurant watching the sun set over it, visited the mission in Santa Barbara, walked out over the ocean on the pier, and ate lunch outside at a restaurant on the harbour
- returned to MI and hit the ground running to prep for the upcoming semester
- pushed pause today to relish and reflect

I'm sure I'll think of more, but for now this list suffices. 
I remember and give thanks.
Hope whelms up for what lies ahead.
Tomorrow something new begins and we convocate