There are days when the great are near us
Ralph Wald Emerson
This week, I had the opportunity to congregate with scholars
(You know, we are the ones who get to wear the great hats at a commencement)
This was a group of scholar practitioners- experts with a passion for their field
Who truly believe in academic tradition and the moral obligation and responsibility of higher education
I was humbled to be counted among them
And I was not alone
I brought with me in my heart my own entourage of greats
Long gone from this world-
but with me in spirit
The grandfather who left his home in Italy
And operated an elevator for decades at a New York College
Where my dad would someday be a professor
The Dad who at the age of 40 got his PhD, inspiring me to do the same
My mother and aunts and grandmothers
Who opened windows of opportunity for women
So I and my granddaughters
Could aspire to even more
Yes, this week in a conference of scholars and educators
I did most assuredly sit among the greats
As you go about your day today
Remember who brought you there
And honor that memory
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let
us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and
let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
Hebrews 12:1
