On Nothing
Kristaps Grundstein via unsplash.com
Welcome back to the View from the 4th Floor Paterson, a newsletter from the Department of History at Carleton University, where we try to make sense of this Department as a collection of the memories, recollections, and above all, social interactions: that is, a community!
An Empty Tank
When I considered what the final newsletter of the winter term could be about, I came up with… nothing. I have no more juice in the tank. No more vim and vigour. No more sparkle.
Nothing.
It’s a funny word, ‘nothing’. An absolute negation. And then I remembered, no, not nothing. There is a very important something that I think we all need to remember. And it’s this.
In the middle of what is clearly a pivot point in history, y’all made it to the end of term. Despite everything. Despite the chaos. Despite learning how to be a student while your prof was learning how to teach online. Despite the failures on both sides at that. Because of the successes. Because you have people here in this department that you rely on. Because you’re a bloody minded obstinate fool who can’t not try to do their best. Because you’re a generous person who tries to see people in the best light. Because you’ve been lucky. Because you’ve not been lucky.
So cut yourself some slack. We’re at the end of the beginning. And maybe from all of this we’ll be better.
So no, not nothing.
See you in the new year.
Worth Reading
Dave Cormier “Designing School When Students Have the Teacher’s Copy” davecormier.com
Jaclyn Legge “From the Students: How’s it Going?” carleton.ca
Worth Watching
The Shannon Lectures 2020 Playlist
Worth Looking Forward To
The Underhill Graduate Colloquium, of course! Led by Sarah Hart and Max Cronkite, this year’s colloquium will be an excellent opportunity for graduate students from Carleton and further afield to present their work remotely. For more information, including the keynote speaker and Call for Papers, follow @CU_Underhill on Twitter! If you know of graduate students at other institutions who might be interested in participating, tell them to keep an eye on The Underhill Graduate Colloquium website. It’s going to be fantastic!
Jon Tyson, via Unsplash.com
This newsletter is produced by the Communications Committee of the Department of History. Questions, concerns, complaints, or kudos: history@carleton.ca, c/o comms committee