Letter #31

Dear October,

        It is super late and I am sitting here in my dorm room, listening to the song of the day on repeat and marveling at life in general. I started my day with the generosity of friends. A few nights ago a classmate and I were talking about how much we missed our dogs at home. When she found out her mother was going to visit and bring their dog, she invited me to join them for some good old fashioned animal time. So I spent my morning with a lovely dog and lovely people. I forgot how much I crave the unwavering energy and enthusiasm  that dogs bring with them to every interaction. It’s just so contagious! The middle of my day was spent studying for my Sociology test, which I think I aced, by the way. After dinner I had a shift in the writing center, and I did my first ever English-as-a-second-language conference. I’m not sure how much help I was, but it was definitely a learning experience. The rest of the evening was spent eating candy in my friend’s room, freaking out (and laughing hysterically) while watching Children of the Corn. There is one scene where the main character is running full speed from the creepy children with a knife wound in his chest, and in the process runs into a pole that slows him down more than the knife wound does. That cracked us up big time. Afterwards we followed Netflix’s suggestion and watched a TV show for pre-teens about a mermaid cult and a guy who turns into a half-merman by falling into a magical pool. We spent most of it trying to figure out if their accents were Australian or New Zealand-ish (?), and examining the sexual tension between the half-merman guy and his best friend.

…So that’s what I did with my Halloween, October. It was an all around good time.

I can’t believe you are almost over. (Actually, you are, since it’s after midnight now.) If there’s anything I’ve learned from this project is that so much can change day to day, and most of the time we don't even notice. I’m not going to pretend I’m a different person than I was at the beginning of the month, but these last few days have felt like I’m on the cusp of change. This project has taught me that life is more than just a procession of moments. It’s thoughts and inside jokes and chances taken and opportunities missed. Each part affects the rest. It’s like a giant puzzle that we will never find all the pieces to, but if we take a few moments to step away from it we can almost make out an image.

At the same time, there’s something to be said for just…living. Experiencing. Feeling. Like the artist in today’s song of the day. You know immediately where his heart is. It is wholly, passionately, impossibly invested in the music, the moment, life. Oh dear life. You’ve been good to me.

Laura

Song of the day: Nothing Stays the Same by Luke Sital-Singh