A student, probably the writer in my class that needed the most fundamental help, came to my office to interview me.  She sat facing me, with her back to the wall where I had a collage of pictures of my family, my friends, Oregon, and my husband—the things that mattered to me most, and all of which (except my husband) were too far away from me.  The photos were a constant reminder, of what I had but also of what I’d lost.

The interview was an assignment for her Freshman Seminar class.  She had three questions to ask me: "What got you interested in teaching composition?", "Where do you see yourself in 10 years, what do you want to have accomplished, will you still be working with the university?", and "If you were teaching your last CO150 class ever, what would you say to us, what would you want us to know?".

© Salahub 2003