I write this in the grogginess of just having woken up. I had a dream I want to remember. I don't remember the beginning very clearly but the end almost exactly. Wait - now I remember some about the beginning. There was a lot of anxiety about my graduation gown. It wasn't the right one. Somehow I didn't have one so I was wearing one from King's College in England. Then it went dark and I wasn't wearing that one either. Anyway...
So for some reason we were all giving farewell addresses to the entire class gathered in a lecture hall - like Stuart 6. I was one of the last to speak. The crowd was very restless, as they had been listening to everyone's speech before mine. I had some problems adjusting the mic, feedback and such, but when I fixed it here's what I said:
"I am thankful for the opportunity to know each one of you!" Thunderous applause. People are standing and jumping around and cheering profusely.
"Each one of you has blessed me these past three years." More wild applause. I guess I was anxious about the sincerity of this effusive praise, so I said with a smirk,
"Are you cheering for me only because I'm near the end?" No! they assured me loudly, with gestures as well. I could sense things were getting a little out of hand so I decided to get to the point and finish quickly. They were wild but I tried to get their attention, and so began,
"Providentia. It's a Latin word from which we get 'providence'. I applied to PhD programs this year but did not get in. So if I ever gave you a sour look this year, I'm sorry, I was dealing with things I didn't quite have the resources to deal with."
At that point my words were swallowed by the noise and raucous activity of the crowd. But I had said my piece, perhaps made my peace. Then the alarm went off.
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