Dear ones,
As 2016 draws to a close, I'll be celebrating in a fashion akin to how I spent the year--rallying a crew of old and new friends, connecting people to each other, moving from a big task just completed to the next item of business, playing dress-up, and mixing an overall playfulness with age-appropriate responsibility.
It's healthy, I think, to reflect back on the past year; in doing so, we relive moments we'd already begun to shelve deep on the wall of memory, and we realize that however quotidian our days may seem, the year has indeed been filled with extraordinary moments. Without further ado, here's the 2016 Year In Review:
I started the year as a second-semester Residence Hall Director at SDSU in Brookings, SD. I gave a TEDx talk at the inaugural SDSU event with my sister, Beth, then a college senior. I'm not sure we ever titled the talk, but we basically related a silly baboon incident from our shared time in Zambia to how different perceptions cause conflict in the world, and how we can work to change that. In theory, it will be on the Internet eventually; stay tuned. For us as sisters, this was a labor-intensive but fruitful endeavor.
I added three more roles on the stage with Brookings Community Theatre, in Nightwatch, The Hollow, and It's a Wonderful Life: Live Radio Play. This has been a great way to get involved in the community and build theatre experience; the four shows I've done in the past 14 months have been in four different venues.
Professionally, I've had some great opportunities:creating a poster presentation to share on campus, co-presenting with a student staff member at the regional student Honors conference, hiring and training a new staff, and attending the regional conference for ACUHO, a professional Residential Life organization. I've also been fortunate to work with LeadState, our sophomore leadership program, run by faculty and staff volunteers across campus.
Much of this has been possible because I returned to SDSU for a second academic year, which has proven very fruitful. I love living in an academic setting and being surrounded by spunky, smart students. I've done a lot of studying, too: first for the Foreign Service Officer Test (round three; I'm in the same spot I've been twice before, waiting to see if I'm invited to the orals) and then for the GRE, which I took yesterday.
As much as I enjoy SDSU and being near my family in South Dakota, however, one of the highlights of the past year was the two months spent away. My position has a ten-month contract, which created two delicious months ripe for summer adventure. I managed to make one trip east into five or more mini-trips, starting with a Greyhound ride and including my 10-year college reunion, backpacking in central Massachusetts with my sister Anne, visiting friends and family in Chicago, Boston, Brockton, Scituate, Washington, D.C., Portland, ME, and New York City, and culminating with a job as the Head Resident Teaching Fellow at Hotchkiss Summer Portals, a middle- and high-school program at an esteemed boarding school in Lakeville, CT. It was a satiating blend of old and new--seeing dear folk who've known me, and whom I've known, in different places in our lives, and making new friends and exploring possibilities for the future. Still nomadic at heart, I love these opportunities to step out of my daily experience, reflect on what has been, and daydream about what can be. I am grateful for the hospitality shown to my sister and me during our travels, and I hope to reciprocate to any friends traveling our way!
Looking forward to 2017: I'm excited to go deeper in relationships with my students and to continue to strive toward a balanced, healthy life. I expect to pay off my undergraduate debt by June, so I feel new freedom to explore graduate schools, and I'm considering MFA and MA programs, eventually working toward a PhD. In preparation, I'm hoping to take a studio art class this semester, do some writing, and seek out opportunities for creative collaboration. What comes next is yet veiled, but I feel no haste and look forward to it revealing itself in due course. Like much of the nation, I am uncertain what the future holds, but I remain hopeful.
As always, the best moments of the past year have been those of connection and intimacy with friends and family. I hope for many like moments in 2017. Wishing you and yours a fabulous year to come!
In peace,
Andrea
