Remembering fondly

Today's sunset seen through my apartment window.

The story of my resignation from Smith College is here, here, and here. 

In 2002 I had an attack of angina after a seven-day migraine (and seven days of triptans to mitigate the migraine so I could continue teaching). I was then in south Texas, and one of my former Smith students heard I was hospitalized with a heart problem and sent me a cast iron finial, stolen from the iron fence that surrounds Smith. The fact that the finial has made it with me to Oregon says a little something about how dear my former Smith students are to me, how much I appreciate their piss-and-vinegar, their sass and brilliance. They were the great gift of that time. Today I turn that finial in my hands, remembering those students as I am confined to my apartment during Covid-19. "Look," I want to say to them, "I'm still here, 28 years after I left Smith, remembering you with beaming admiration."  Extra: the finial. 

May you all be safe, healthy, and filled with your own sass and brilliance.