The Transformation

I told a couple of my professors earlier in the semester that I felt that I have been going through an academic growth spurt. It has been my first year year in the PhD program, and while I was in grad school for 2 years before this (working on my masters), I am finally figuring out my stride.

While I love the Paula Radcliffe quote, "I cannot my life without running," there is a second quote I would need to add,

"I cannot imagine my life without school."

I love reading and school so much. I have loved teaching. Grad school is absolutely the best place for me right now. Not everyone goes straight from undergrad to grad, and no, it is not undergrad part 2. There was definitely a transitional period; a time of adjustment. You have to figure out your professors, how to write, how to speak, and even how to think.

And I won't say that I have figured it out completely, but I know what I am doing and I absolutely love it.

The professors who I TA for took me and the other TAs out for dinner last night. We had a blast - we all were relieved that the semester was over. Then, they toasted each of us. One of the professors, who came to my school the same year I did, has increasingly played an important role in my academic career, and this semester I have been able to study with her and teach with her. When I got home, I actually wrote down what she said, so that I could pull it out and remember it during the harder parts that will be coming up (PhD comps, dissertation),

"You have transformed so much since you started, and that has just been lovely to watch."

And she was right - it is that growth process that matters so much.

I am in the process of transforming in my running too.