Mardi Meditations #15

Fifteen seems like a good number for a series of posts, so this will officially mark my last "Mardi Meditations" post. After this, I will go back to posting periodically based on what's on my mind and what's going on in my life. 

After Thanksgiving, I will turn in my final (for now) draft of my dissertation prospectus and officially shift to studying for comps. I'm in the process of carting home backpacks of books one trip at a time. Looking at my desk here at GSU, I think that three loads are likely. 

In the meantime, I can look back at a semester of accomplishments, despite having left my official curatorial position in August. Last week, I celebrated the installation of the Grant Park Public History Project panels at Erskine Fountain and "Fort Walker" along with James Newberry, Mad Dworczak, and the good folks of the Grant Park Conservancy headed by Michelle Blackmon. (See three out of the four of us enjoying a moment in the Autumn sunshine below). 

I am also almost finished with my Kell Hall exhibit project which turned into a mini biography of Georgia State University anchored on the iconic parking garage turned student hangout. It was fun to have an opportunity to research the school where (God-willing) I will obtain my terminal degree in just over two years time. 

As a series of moments, fall of 2025 has been a glorious journey of rooting and discovery. I have taken more time to be present with my family while also enabling my mind to travel outward on flights of fancy (and analysis). I have been learning how to learn and why, even without a long term goal in sight. I have remained connected to my field, and my friends, and my colleagues without feeling like I am drowning in obligations and interpretive responsibilities. 

Looking out on a gold-leafed limb of a beech tree from my second-floor cubby at the GSU library, I am feeling grateful for the transition space it gave me. I am ready, now, to embrace whatever challenges come my way next semester and beyond.