Ailsa’s travel theme this week at Where’s My Backpack? focuses on International Women’s Day. Awesome.
When I finally decided to get my butt back into school, I had the very good fortune to go to Wellesley College. Yes, it’s a women’s college. Wellesley is academically top-notch, I got to study a subject that I loved, it opened up whole new fields of interests for me that I didn’t know I had until I got there, and I was surrounded by amazingly intelligent, funny, interesting women of all ages and backgrounds and orientations and histories, who never seem to want to stop learning and growing.
The school is still a source of mental strength for me. I go back and visit when I can; it’s an astonishingly beautiful campus. And the lessons I learned while I was there are with me to this day. Going there wasn’t “easy” in the traditional sense of the word–I lost a ton of sleep to late-night cram sessions and smoked five times as many cigarettes as I should have–but it was one of the best things I have ever done for myself.
The Carillon.
The academic quad.
The library seen through the rhododendrons.
Down we go!
My old dorm! That porch was the setting for most of my late-night smoking.
Me, rowing crew on Lake Waban. (OK, so I didn’t take this picture.)
Reunion weekend! So glad to be back around fierce women of all ages.
thank you for this wonderful look in to a part of what formed you
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It was a pretty amazing place. I’m constantly grateful that I got to experience it.
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Love this ” smoked five times as many cigarettes as I should have” ahh, college. Really enjoyed your post 🙂
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Ahh, college. Between that and the endless amounts of coffee, it’s remarkable I ever slept at all. 😉
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[…] Travel Theme: International Women’s Day (beyondpaisley.net) […]
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Thanks for the pingback!
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Lovely post!
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Thank you so much!
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On TV I heard someone say “You turn faster than a young student at Wellesley.” I think I now know what that means. . . ;o)
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It’s true. We all become photographers.
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I lied. I still have no idea what it means. ;o)
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hey! i go to Wellesley now and I hate it. glad to see someone enjoyed her time there i guess.
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Ha! Just read the reasons for your rage. You make some good points, though I’m perfectly willing to argue that you’d have the same experiences at every college campus, to one degree or another. I’m not saying that ought to invalidate your anger; I’m glad someone looks at the culture critically. I certainly had my problems with the college culture, and if I’d had to take a different selection of classes it’s entirely possible I would have snapped (I transferred in a lot of my foundation classes, so I was really able to focus on my major). Completely minor, inane example: Despite my friends telling me what a beautiful thing it was, I still can’t wrap my head around step singing. I’m sorry your time at W has been a drag. But thanks for dropping by!
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Step singing! Oh my god don’t even get me started!!!!!! Thanks for reading the reasons for my rage! More to come later! And I probably would have hated any college, this is true.
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