Merry of soul, she sailed on a day
O’er the sea to Skye…
The pipes play a melancholy air…
(Art by Robert W. Griffing)
Today we are trekking not over the sea to Skye but over the Cascades to Eugene. It’s move-in day for Ceili at the University of Oregon. The lass is, indeed, merry of soul — ready to immerse herself in the university experience. A great deal more ready than her dad and mom, I can assure you.
Of course, this is how these things are meant to be and I won’t wax maudlin with bittersweet clichés.
Yes, I’ll miss my hiking, shooting and music buddy, and watching Outlander will not be the same without the full Gathering of the Clan.
I’m also more than a touch envious. She’s got some interesting academic pursuits lined up. U of O has a brilliant program to break students into the University experience called First-Year Interest Groups.
One of the best ways to get started at the university is to join a First-Year Interest Group (FIG) for fall term. FIGs bring groups of 20 first year students together for a unique academic experience. FIG students take three courses together during fall term: two lecture courses and a 1-credit College Connections course, which are all connected by an overarching theme. The two lecture courses’ credits count towards a degree, no matter which major is chosen.
Ceili chose the FIG “Our Storied Past”:
This FIG will explore the role that storytelling has played in human evolution by comparing two oral traditions: the myths and legends of hunter-gatherer peoples and the Icelandic sagas.
Yes, that’s my girl. She’s starting college off by going a-Viking.
A bit on the Prof:
Dr. Scalise Sugiyama is an evolutionary psychologist/anthropologist who specializes in symbolic and aesthetic behavior, with an emphasis on storytelling, art, and play. Her work investigates the origins of these behaviors—specifically, the selection pressures that led to their emergence, the role they played in ancestral human societies, and the design features of the mind that make them possible. To this end, her work integrates cognitive and developmental psychology, evolutionary biology, hunter-gatherer studies, art history, folklore, and literary study. She teaches courses on the prehistory of literature (Origins of Storytelling) and art behavior (Origins of Art), and on the ecological niche to which humans are adapted (Hunter-Gatherers). She publishes in both scientific and humanities journals, and blogs for the Huffington Post, where she explores modern issues, trends, and behaviors in light of human evolutionary history.
Cool.
I’m sure Ceili will encounter some of the academic and social nonsense that worked like a burr under my saddle back in the day. For that, I am preparing a care package which will include the traditional Clan Cornelius micro-aggression t-shirt reading “Peace Through Superior Firepower,” which is the height of campus fashion. Dealing with kooks and their nonsense is all to the good — it hones the blade. I believe she is headed for a rich experience that she is well-equipped to enjoy to the fullest.
Truly, she is heading toward “mountains of rain” — it is Eugene, Oregon, after all — and “glory of youth” does, indeed, “glow in her soul.” ’Tis a fine thing.
Cort says
I have seen very few in her situation that are as adequately prepared for this next step, well-deserved kudos to you and Marilyn for that. So many already there for a year or two are anxious to see her and help with her transition, there are plenty of pseudo-mothers/sisters on call. I have no doubt that Nina will track her down or vice versa, and we’re happy to bring her home for a weekend when opportunity and desire meet in the same place.
Congrats all of you and I’m a willing if far less interesting substitute for those mountain hikes.
JimC says
Thanks amigo. And you’ve got a deal on the hiking.
Katie Williams says
Wonderfully said Jim! Happy trails Miss Ceili! Hope you enjoy every minuteo of it. Slainte! Katie
Paul McNamee says
Good luck, Ceili!
Annie says
Best empty nester tale that has every been told. Good luck, Ceili, exciting times ahead of you. Mom and Dad will be just fine. They have a storage chest brimming with wonderful memories to get them through the harshest of winters.
Study of the Viking past may be a good idea. This global warming may un-ice a people that are more than ready to take on the trials and tribulations of today.
“Old friends are the last to break away.”
john roberts says
Scalise Sugayima is one of the greatest names I’ve ever seen. Is it for real or made up? Capone had a torpedo named Scalise. Scalse and Anselm did the hit on Dion O’Bannion. Later Scallise displeased Al and he killed him with a baseball bat.
Saddle Tramp says
A proud (and very promising) moment Jim. Yes, the sky is the limit. A very touching and poignant send off letter!
JimC says
Thx ST.
lane batot says
Here’s hoping Ceili will embrace the college life with greater enthusiasm, scholastic ability, and appreciation than I did during my incarceration on the reservation. I ended up getting an education all right, just not the one on the curriculum necessarily! She WILL be coming home to visit, of course! I went home almost every weekend, that first, miserable(for me) year. Drove that old tanker, the 1970 Chevy Impala! Once I chauffered a fellow college student looking for a ride in my home town’s direction–one would take passengers like that in those days to save money on the RIDICULOUS gas prices at the time, which had jumped from 50 cents a gallon to a whole dollar!!!! Anyway, I told her I’d be picking her up in front of her dorm in a maroon impala, and to not be suprised with the RABBIT in the front seat!(I kept a pet rabbit in my dorm room–quite against the rules, but a quiet, easy-to-hide critter that I got away with for the entire term of my imprisonment/education. And quite the personality Sophia the rabbit was! And she INSISTED on riding shotgun in the car.) So I picked the girl up, and she said “Oh, NOW I see what you meant by the rabbit! I got confused as to whether you were driving a rabbit or an impala!”(for you whipper-snappers out there, there actually WAS a car called the Volkswagon Rabbit in those days!). To which I quipped “Boy, you REALLY woulda been suprised if I had driven up in a rabbit with an impala in the front seat!”(which,in hindsight, would not have been that far-fetched for me, then or now.)…..
JimC says
Love it.
Keith West says
Here’s wishing her (and you) all the best. I’m sure she’ll do fine.