September 9, 2014 - 14:30
By this weeks scribe
September 7, 2014
Our group got right to the task of finding a name and multiple suggestions were rapidly offered. But then one of us had suggested “Double XX’s” which struck a chord with the group which was later refined to Double X’s. This was decided to be our way of identifying us as a group of mixed females from different parts of the country, differently aged and with different life stories all leading us to this moment in the classroom. Later, it had occurred to me that DNA is in many ways an ultimate identifier. It is used in forensics, how we socialize the sexes, and through which our values and world view about each is shaped. I also found it interesting to note that in 1905 Nettie Stevens, a Bryn Mawr Alumni, was one of the first American women to identify differences in chromosomes which distinguishes between males and females in insects. Interesting that this conversation continues however intuitively we may have come upon it.
The span of life stories and our trajectories which lead us to this school was fascinating. Firstly, the way our group developed was seemingly random, we each called out numbers from 1 to 4 right? What are the chances that we would each be standing in a row to call out the numbers that would define me a 1 from a 4 for instance. So how is it that a person looking for a class, hearing good things about the professor decided to register for this one via studies to becoming a lawyer to preventative care to sociology to human services? Or another member who explored the world after high school, working in a nursing home, pursued nursing then gave that up and recently entered the track of studies for human services with a look to poverty in aging populations. One of us waited a whole year to get into this class, and whose interests point to contemplative mindfulness treatment practice in social work. One of us came here one year later than originally planned.
With regards to age, two of us are some of the oldest members of our entire class, -now what are the chances we’d both end up in the same group? One of our members reports that she grew up with older parents and a 12-1/2 year difference between herself and a sibling…which was like growing up in a household of adults I can only imagine. She seeks more information and insight into family dynamics in this class- that in itself, is a very interesting motivation. One of our members had a unique experience of growing up with a sister with a bi-polar condition and selected this class to shape an independent study to holistically examine a number of personal interests and questions.
With varied trajectories that led each to this class, I wonder how random this all is? And much like the torque embedded in the double helix which provides the momentum for the possibilities of life, I think that our group name holds the potential for great learning and experience. We’re about to launch to find out.