It seems sadly appropriate (or maybe ironic?) that the class called "silence" is the one I have most trouble speaking up in. This problem isn't new for me -- I struggled in ESem and it looks like I'll be struggling for a while again. I know I'll hit my stride eventually. What helped me last time, though, was using Serendip as a form to (unselfishly!) share unspoken thoughts with the class. 

Today, during our discussion of poetry and whether or not a person's interpretation can be "wrong" or "right", I was reminded of my high school's entrance exam. There was a small section of analogy work (triangle is to shape as purple is to _____) and some mathematical ratio problems. But the bulk of the test was poetry analysis. We were given one poem and 50 minutes to annotate and write and analytical essay. As someone who is ambivalent towards poetry on the best days, needless to say I was worried. But I did my best, writing so quickly that most of my thoughts were illegible. I never thought much of that poem after taking the test. Until this class, that is. I wonder, now, what it was they saw in my analysis. Were they looking for something specific? Did they just like my style? Maybe all they wanted was a well-organized essay with all the parts in the same place. I'll never know of course. I have no real conclusions about my experience here, but would welcome yours.

And off to a completely separate thought! 

This is how I feel about the image that I chose to represent Bryn Mawr. It’s beautiful, yes. It’s descriptive, yes. But it still seems like it only grazes the surface of what the physical campus of Bryn Mawr is to me. By choosing this picture (which is, by the way, not mine- I got it off of tumblr.com and searching “Bryn Mawr”) I have chosen to foreground the part of the campus where I spent much of my freshman year. I lived in the dorm farthest from the rest of the campus, but the trade off was walking to class gave me the best view of campus. Though that was two years ago, the view that comes to mind when I think “Bryn Mawr” is still this one. It feels magical to me- I love the roses, the greenery, and the castle-like dorm in the background. The flowers are fore grounded because I always find anything in nature much more beautiful than structures built by humans (such as buildings.) The terra incognita of the image would be the gym (on the left-hand side) and tennis courts on the right. Since I am more interested in the plants on campus than the man-made structures it doesn’t matter very much to me that the gym and tennis courts are not in the picture.

Hi All,

A friend of mine shared the following video with me, and I think it's an interesting way to frame one of the issues facing the school system here in Philly, and it offers a potential solution.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Ld2IxaCXSyA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

I have chosen a place I love under one enormous weeping beech tree in Swarthmore, PA  to foreground.

The background photo is in the open air Forest Temple in the middle of the sacred Monkey Forest, Ubud, Bali, 1979.  There I was invited by the high priest, Pedanda Gde Manuaba to assist in the sanding of the ears of the sacred Rangda mask. (Its wood was of a particular tree in that forest.)

In hopes that they help guide you on your Wanderings:

VACILANDO

Urban Dictionary: Vacilando is a Spanish term for the act of wandering when the experience of travel is more important than reaching the specific destination.

John Steinbeck (in Travels With Charley: In Search of America, 1962) wrote:

“ In Spanish there is a word for which I can't find a counterword in English. It is the verb vacilar, present participle vacilando. It does not mean vacillating at all. If one is vacilando, he is going somewhere, but does not greatly care whether or not he gets there, although he has direction."

*this is the only accurate definition I could find in English

COEXISTENCE

OED: a. Existence together or in conjunction. b. With special reference to peaceful existence side by side of states professing different ideologies.

Online Etymology Dictionary: mid-15c., "joint existence;" see co- + existence. As "peaceful relations between states of different ideologies," 1954, a Cold War term.

Merriam-Webster: 1. to exist together or at the same time. 2. to live in peace with each other especially as a matter of policy.

I really wanted to use a picture of myself for this but didn't necessarily want it to show my face very clearly. I chose this for that reason and also because of what it shows about my voice/silence in a protest setting, something that is very important to me and has been an instrumental part in me finding my voice (as I wrote about in my last silence post). I also like that it is in black and white, especially after someone described silence as colorful in class and after reading the Little Book where Zehr recommends black and white fotography as a way to observe light. Also I just really like this picture :)