Musings of Professor Fox

Deep into the summer of 2016, my wife and I were sitting on the back porch, enjoying the view, talking about life, and sipping our respective beverage of choice. I had been struggling for years with the decision about whether or not to go to Graduate School and earn a higher degree or be satisfied with being unsatisfied with my job. Really, many things were on the table and she finally just said: "If you are going to do it, now would be the best time. Figure out what to do and do it." At some point, I think I had just hoped that someone else would make the choice for me and the clouds would open up with the booming voice that said, "You are going to do THIS." That moment never happened, but I did start to move forward with some planning.  Many years ago, I made the decision to pursue industry certifications instead of advanced degrees mostly because I felt they were more useful to my job. In hindsight, and if you work in a University setting, go with the advanced de...

 once upon a time  time was a figment figment of a people  people who loved loved to engage engage and inspire inspire the spark spark of a dream dream of a world world in a pen pen on the page  page to the end end of the time time that was once 

 the night flew by without notice conversation engaging as the barriers disintegrated leaving each other  open and vulnerable to chase whimsical transgressions into the dark horizon  over five-minute hours as dawn faraway broke gently into their soul-baring revelry 

 the trees in the forest  are placed ever so  delicately by random chance offering  umbrage to the smallest traveler on the unmarked  paths winding and twisting  over and under deadfall old becoming new  with natural sincerity

Planted long ago, the tree had seen many seasons come and go. He marked time as his world cycled from wet and green to frozen and white, and he always looked forward to a nice winter nap when the leaves finally finished showing off their rainbow colors and floated to the ground. At some point, the curious-looking two-legged creatures living behind him started planting friends for him. Cherry and Peach and their sisters were his favorite. They always spoke the kindest, and they brought the funny little buzzing creatures that landed on each blossom during the wet and green time. They would occasionally buzz around him, but since he had no flowers, they quickly got bored and moved off. His favorite time was during the really warm part of the cycle. The smallest of the two-legged creatures would spend hours playing in the soft green stuff at the base of his trunk. Occasionally one of them would stand really close to him with their head pressed against his bark and utter strange incantation...

  The temperatures are fluctuating, and the skies are dark in the morning which signals the start of another January semester. I will admit to feeling the same feelings as a professor that I once felt as a student: excitement, apprehension, nervousness, fear of the unknown. Added to the normal issues faced in the academic environment, we are in, what, month 22 of the COVID-19 pandemic? Since I just turned 50, I have set myself some goals for the next decades, or at least as many as I'm given. One of these goals is to "justttttttttttt do something". In light of that, welcome to my space of exploring my inner mental monologue. -Professor Fox