Frozen in Time

Thursday afternoon I experienced one of those frozen in time episodes. I was back on campus at the University of Idaho for a series of meetings for the Northwest Inland Writing Project and as I stood between the Women's Gym and the Education Building snapping pictures I felt like it was the spring of 1976 and I was leaving my job at the gym to walk back over to the Ed building for an afternoon class. The weather had that windy, cold feeling of late spring that I remembered well. The spring flowers were just beginning to bloom. The odd shaped KIVA was still jutting out the side of the second floor of the building that was my second home during college.Shadowed by the afternoon sun the Memorial Gym may be covered with more ivy, but looked exactly the same also. There was one significant change. From that vantage point in front of the gym the trees had grown tall enough to hide most of the famous I Tower that stands high on a hill as a landmark of the university.

I found comfort in returning to those college haunts for a few days. When I return to the Ed. building I always peek around the corner to the University kindergarten on the first floor where I enjoyed my first experience working with students. I love to wander around the College of Education library recalling delightful hours of immersing myself in children's literature collections. The walls are still covered with bright, cheerful projects from the Art Methods class.

Yes, there are new computers that await you when you enter the building now. You can get Vandal Air wifi or try out a Smart Board in many classrooms. Starbucks is close by and you don't have to use the pay phone in the basement anymore, but the bones of the building are still there to remind me of where I began this long and rewarding journey of teaching and learning. I paused and relished that frozen in time experience a few more minutes.