For now, this is my last regular reference desk shift at the Hatcher Graduate Library. I expected a flood of new students asking questions, incoming faculty wandering around, a bustle of folks figuring things out... instead, it is quiet. It feels like the calm before the storm, but its the storm that is needed to re-energize us and propel us forward into the new year.
That's one thing I love about being involved in higher education as both a student and an employee. I love that the school year is so busy you don't have time to think but yet everything is productive and meaningful. I love that when summer comes, ambitions to do the projects that get put on the back-burner are high, but that the summer is too short to possibly complete all of them... and we need a small break in the action that is academia.
I love that when August hits, email ramps up, orientation tours start, and planning for fall accelerates. I love that come late August, the temperatures start to cool down (or heat up) and you can begin to see the hint of color in the leaves. By the time September 1 hits, the streets are closed for student move-in (and you can't drive anywhere) and the summertime freedom of taking our town back from the students is no longer a reality.
But what I love most is that the seasons change, they happen, and they're all wonderful. As much as I look forward to summer, I look forward to fall. And I'm lucky to have this time to appreciate and reflect on this transition, because the closer we get to the Tuesday after Labor Day, the busier I'll get. And I love that.
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