Day 65: Pause for thought...

Day 65: ...by the kooka we've named Dylan...

Just thinking...

When your education has traversed several institutions, it is hard to know which one becomes your 'alma mater' in the way people are wont to say. I have two here in Brisbane which could claim that title and two in Tokyo. A Latin term, meaning 'bounteous mother', with origins in the mid 17th century according to some, to mean something or someone providing nourishment. That doesn't make it easier since each of the four universities with which I have strong graduate affiliations have contributed something of that over the years. Indeed, I do feel fortunate in many ways.

This morning I travelled over to Griffith University for a seminar by a visiting Fulbright Scholar. We are lucky to have this kind of expertise with which to engage freely, particularly now I am away from my own workplace.

I suppose Griffith holds a particular place because it was my first university and, it is fair to say, planted the seed of thought and scholarship which I have tried to continue to this day. At the same time, there is always a tinge of the 'what ifs?' when I go to Griffith. For many years, it was the place I had hoped to return to to continue to contribute to its program of taking state high school kids like me and giving them opportunities we'd never imagined. But, as they say, that's life. Universities have changed dramatically and such nostalgia is marketed and strategised right out of those place these days. Still, I can't help but think about it. 

Nice then, that when I got home, the kooka we've named Dylan ('cos his feathers are always blowin' in the wind) was on the back verandah again. Naturally, s/he was to take a starring role with close-ups, I think s/he quite likes that. But there was just a moment s/he flew to a branch high in the gum tree and took, what looked like, a moment to contemplate what might have been...perhaps I was projecting a little too much...

Kooka detail no. 1

Kooka detail no. 2

[Camera : Canon EOS60D, 75-300mm, 12.26pm, 1.48pm, 1.52pm]