THOUGHTS ON GRADUATION

So the first week after class has gone and as Renate said the rain and wind provides the right time to cocoon at home in front of the fire.

Our last Friday was a flurry with missing classrooms, closing interviews,  all the paperwork to be completed and things to be organized. Finally we got to relax and sit down for our last meal together and then at last the Project presentation that everyone had been collecting ideas, writing in their journal and discussing for the last few months.

I will try not to sound too sentimental but it was a wonderful experience. Everyone of you conveyed a belief in yourself in not only what you had painted, created, constructed and written, but also in the way you conveyed this belief and confidence to both the group and the Art students who became our audience. Is it too patronising to express a pride in what had taken place over the last 6 months?   I will speak only for myself. I love the concept of lifelong learning where every day can add to the richness of your life. It confirms to me that through whatever nature or nurture gives us, skills and talents can be continuously added to. That desire to be curious, inquiring, aware, interested and involved was part of what made the semester rocket along.

And then it was over - we had finished our while together and it was time for everyone now to leave. You had all completed what you set out to do and you had done it well. Keep posting thoughts, observations, photos and memories so those who come to the future NOW courses will know what they can achieve. 

Just in case you forget my little set of mantras here they are again. 
Respond not react – it will make your life so much easier. Try to find the positives and not focus on the negatives and most importantly just ….. BREATHE …..

 "I felt my lungs inflate with the onrush of scenery—air, mountains, trees, people.

 I thought, "This is what it is to be happy."

— Sylvia Plath (The Bell Jar)