Now we know in part...

I don't know about the rest of you, but the last few days feel like a blur.

The weekend was spent entertaining Laura's little sister Kathleen who came to visit us from Hamilton. It was quite a whirlwind of visiting the zoo, shopping at Winners, walking up George Street and window shopping, watching ducks and picnicking at Del Crary Park. We sent Kathleen off at five a.m. Monday morning so that she could make it back to Redeemer for registration. Meanwhile Laura and I had registration of our own to deal with.

Laura dropped me off at Brad's apartment and Brad and I shouldered past intimidating kindergartners as we walked to Catherine Parr Traill College, Trent's graduate campus. We felt very similar to kindergartners ourselves as we walked with a great deal of uncertainty into our first day of grad school. The motto that Trent uses is taken from a text in 1 Corinthians 13 where Paul states that now he knows in part what he will one day know in full even as Christ knows us in full. How appropriate. It seemed that the longer I sat in that cramped, non-air-conditioned room, and the more explaining that was done about our role as teaching assistants, the more confused I became about how exactly I had managed to slip through the net and manage to get myself accepted to this position.

I have just begun to grasp the meaning of the impostor complex which apparently plagues the world of academia. My paranoia began to grow that, at every break time and as every new presenter began to speak, I would hear my name called and someone would tell me that there had been an unfortunate mistake and that I had actually not been accepted into this program and that I was barely qualified to enroll in a compulsory grade ten Canadian History class. After re-reading that last sentence seven times I am sure that they would be right.

Fortunately, various speakers, past TA's, teachers, prof's and others all confessed to these same symptoms and fears that are barely hidden under the surface of any academic speakers' professional exterior.

On the whole, Trent seems to be an alright place. Like all institutions that are well known for their scholarly reflection, Trent is situated along a gorgeous river, has a mouthwatering library of resources and a variety of good trees under which one might sit and contemplate the hospitality Trent has shown in providing three free luncheons, nachos and beer.

I have never been one to push my luck, but I think that this requires that I smooth my disheveled countenance, pick up my mask and resume the facade that I am, in fact qualified to be pursuing my M.A.

Tot ziens