An Introduction (new series)

I was recently clicking through Wikipedia articles (an act of procrastination related to a lack of direction in writing a blog post about how my students revealed their hierarchy of values during a class activity about societal pressure). In my distracted efforts to hone my now rusty pub-trivia-oriented mind, I continued through Wiki pages for at least an hour. I landed upon "Felix Mendelssohn" and was delighted to follow a link to an external page about Mendelssohn's decision to embrace Lutheranism over Judaism.

Despite being born a Jew, Mendelssohn was baptized in accordance with his parents wishes--his parents, however, were not baptized until Mendelssohn was a teenager. These conversions are now widely interpreted to have been indicative of a general shift away from shtetl life in 19th century Germany: In 1812, Germany guaranteed German Jews full civil equality if they converted from Judaism. Theoretically seeing an opportunity for socio-economic advancement, the Mendelssohns became some of the more famous converts from Judaism.

"Falletin Me Be Mice Elf"

Autumn is a difficult time for me to be away from the United States, from family, and from friends.

I often miss how autumn brings a transition of colors, flavors, and smells. Even though 南京 (Nanjing) experiences cooling temperatures more than 深圳 (Shenzhen), the leaves on most trees do not go through red, orange, or bright yellow phases. They immediately become brown with sickly yellow edges. They do, however, retain the gratifying crunch when stepped-on. Menus do not change, though, to favor pumpkins, apples, and spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, or clove. Pumpkins are popular year-round, and cider is completely absent in China. And I truly miss how the thick air of summer thins and reveals that lush smell of decomposition in the autumn. (Most of China has either the smell of pollution or public defecation.)

And the holidays (from October 14th through Jewish High Holidays, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and into "holiday season") trigger an automatic craving for contact with friends and family. Regardless of my criticisms of celebrating historical imperialism or commercial materialism, I, like most Americans, feel a twinge of longing for those connections we hold dearest.

Checking-In

Tai qi in the campus woods

As much as I hoped my hiatus would inspire creative thought, I have found the break from blogging (and all writing) to be mostly unproductive. I enjoyed challenging myself to reorient my approach to reflection, expression, and observation; but I require the cathartic comfort of organizing my thoughts in writing.

I think part of my frustrations with my writing lay in my undeniably narcissistic tones--I aspire for diminished ego, though. And the remainder of my frustrations lay in the cliche duality of desiring praise and recognition while fending off the pressure of expectations--according to Blogger, I have followers all over the western hemisphere and in Kazakhstan.

Regardless, I have returned with a report (or review) of first quarter academia highlights.