That Time Again

                Well, it’s another week at Harvard. My philosophy instructor just emailed me that I need to completely redo my term paper plan, so that’s going to be fun, but everything will work out. Weekly assignments are being phased out; final projects and papers are coming into vogue; people are showing up to class later and later. It’s that time again. Still, life is fairly calm.

                The word of the week in German is unhaltbarkeit, un(not)-halt(hold)-bar(able)-keit(the quality of), also known as untenability. It seems very apt for the season of quasi-senioritis that comes upon us all at the end of each semester, when it’s a little too early to worry about finals but too late to worry about anything else. A week from now, I’ll be on a plane home for Thanksgiving break; I’m looking forward to being back.

                I’ve already completed one of my final projects. Last Thursday I presented in Arabic on whether governments should pay ISIS for hostages. I used my usual method of writing everything down (like most people, I write much more eloquently than I speak, no matter what language I’m using) and then memorizing it the night before, which meant the presentation was less than fluent but the grammar and vocabulary were high-register. I’m not sure how it went, but people seemed to understand what I was saying, so that’s a good sign.

                I did actually go into Boston this weekend, if only for a couple of hours. I attended Citywide, a worship event held by the Boston branch of Cru, at Park Street Church. The talk was on dealing with suffering and evil in the world and whether a loving God was justified in punishing evil. The general consensus was that he was. Then we all went home and heard about Paris and Beirut.

                On Saturday I woke up earlier than I wanted to in order to pass out programs at the Harvard football game. It was very windy and freezing cold, and after an hour of standing outside I wasn’t up for going to the game anymore, although I’d planned to. Instead, a friend and I grabbed a snack at a coffee-shop and then headed back to Harvard to chat. We ended up talking for about two hours; it didn’t get much schoolwork done, but I’m glad we did it anyway. I also had lunch and dinner with friends on Sunday. It was a very social weekend, but not a very productive one in terms of school. Still, with a two-day week coming up, there’s not that much to be done short-term. And it’s that time of semester.

                We did have a bit of excitement on Monday, if you haven’t heard. There was an ‘unconfirmed bomb threat’ – I’m not sure if the bomb or the threat was unconfirmed – for the same four buildings as my freshman year. I wasn’t in one of the buildings this time, but people in class were uncomfortable enough to be unable to think, so we ended class early. If it had been a week ago or time for midterms, perhaps it wouldn’t have been a big deal, but people are more keyed up now.

                On the other hand, since it wasn’t finals, having the buildings closed was much less inconvenient. It wasn’t snowing, I didn’t get locked out of my dorm, I didn’t have finals to worry about, I had my stuff, and I wasn’t caught as off-guard as last time. Still, it was a little nerve-racking. It took quite a while before all the buildings were reopened and classes could resume, but life eventually went on as usual. They still haven’t caught the perpetrator.

                One last thought before I go. In my music class we’re studying the Rite of Spring*, perhaps the most famous piece of music of the twentieth century. The music is meant to sound primitive, primordial, and dissonant, the idea being partly to show the primeval chaos before the complicated artifice of civilization came along. And yet, if you take a look at the rather overwhelming score, it takes a brilliant composer and an awful lot of work (and over twice the normal number of orchestra rehearsals before the first performance) to make something that sounds unplanned and unordered. Perhaps the world is not so naturally chaotic and dissonant as Stravinsky would have us believe.

*https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jo4sf2wT0wU

This is the complete ballet. For general information: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rite_of_Spring

Pictures:

Some belated additions from last week:

 To continue with my 'Harvard through the Seasons' photo series...

 This is Park Street Church before Citywide (Don't worry; this was taken fairly early, but there were plenty of people there by the time it started.)

 I saw three people take pictures of this platform while waiting for our train back to Cambridge; apparently it's very photogenic. You can decide for yourself.

 When we realized we matched

 I thought the mini-pine cones were adorable; feel free to disagree.

 This is of one of the helicopters flying around during the bomb scare, if you can spot it.

Harvard Hosting

I had a visitor this past weekend, as I’m sure many of you have seen on Facebook. Katie, my oldest friend (friend-wise, not age-wise), came to visit me in Boston, and we had a great time. That, combined with a few other happenings and my midterm grades, means that I’ve had an excellent week thus far.

What did we do? On Thursday I left after my afternoon class to pick her up from the airport; the plane landed a half-hour early, so she got there a long time before I did, but it worked out. We took the T back to Harvard Square, and I provided a cursory tour of the Yard before we headed back to the Quad. By this time it was already dark and early evening, so I went to my evening class and she took a nap. We watched the first episode of BBCs Pride and Prejudice before heading to bed.

On Friday the real adventure began. I’d already walked the Freedom Trail once when my parents were here, but we didn’t always go inside, and there were parts that were new to me. Fortunately, both Katie and I enjoy the (generally) quiet and peaceful atmosphere of graveyards, since there are a few of them on the trail; especially with the fall scenery, the plots were quite beautiful. We went by the usual monuments and went inside quite a few of them.

I’m afraid Israel and Europe may have spoiled me for touring for a while. After living in a 5000-year-old city and seeing some of the greatest cathedrals and abbeys in the world, a 300-year-old church doesn’t raise as much excitement as it might otherwise. Still, I always enjoy historical sites and handsome buildings. The attractions also gave us a chance to pass through a couple of the gift shops.

We spent longer at some places than at others, grabbing lunch and dessert at Quincy Market and paying to go through Paul Revere’s house. It was the first time I’d seen the house from the inside, and it was interesting to see the size and arrangement of the place, although pictures weren’t allowed. We didn’t have time to finish the trail – the last two sites are about three times as far away as everything else – but we did stop in Central Square for ice cream at Toscanini’s before heading back to Harvard to nearly finish Pride and Prejudice.

Saturday was much calmer; we slept in a little (I’d had ROTC on Friday morning) and then I gave a more thorough tour of Harvard’s facilities. We sat and talked a while by the Charles River, and then we went to see a couple of Harvard’s museums. By early afternoon we’d headed back to the Quad to talk where it was warmer and finish the series.

That evening, though, was special; it was the first UC concert I watched instead of participating in. Katie came with me, and I met a couple more friends there. We enjoyed the concert, I and the other alumni joined in the alumni song, and at the reception afterwards I got to trade hugs and news with the rest of the group, while Katie ran into a Harvard student from her high school who also happened to be attending. We had a good time before heading back to the Quad for a couple more hours of talking before we went to bed, ready to get up and head to the airport early Sunday morning.

A few other things have happened this week. For one, I joined the Cru worship team, so we sang during the large group gathering on Wednesday night. It’s a lot less work than a cappella, but it’s very satisfying to be able to sing in a group again, especially since I get to sing harmony. I had a slight fever Sunday afternoon – I’m usually borderline sick as long as the cold weather lasts – but a care package from my parents helped to remedy that. Most of the week, though, was focused on Katie’s visit, whether that was doing extra work in order to make time for fun, the visit itself, or reflecting on where our friendship is and how we’ve both grown.

And we have grown. I’ve known Katie all my life, and seeing her reminds me of who I once was, who I still am, and who I’m becoming. In college, and especially when studying abroad, I have grown and matured. I have learned and lived. I could never go back. But in essentials, I believe, I am very much what I ever was, and Katie assures me of the same. We are both different, but both, I think, more ourselves than ever before as we begin to work toward our potential. Hopefully we can stay on that path as the time passes.

Pictures: I took 270 photos this weekend (with Katie's help)! Here are the highlights:

Walking from Harvard Yard to the Quad:

 Boston Common:

 As it turns out, cemeteries are just really pretty.

 King's Chapel:

 Old North Church (I skipped a few stops):

 We found a small park by the bay through which to meander:

 More cemeteries (these are different ones; I promise)!

 Toscanini's

 I just look better in black-and-white.

 I find it hard to resist taking pictures of steeples.

 The Charles River:

 Harvard Yard:

 I insisted she take a picture with the statue (to be fair, I insisted on most of the pictures).

Halloweek

                Suddenly I turn around and there’s only a month left of school! (The frantic interlude between Thanksgiving and finals doesn’t really count.) It’s November, the foliage is at the peak of its glory, and the first of the three major end-of-year holidays is behind us. Whispers of Christmas are drifting through the air; Thanksgiving dinners are already being planned. It’s only a matter of time.

                Life has calmed down considerably since midterms, although I’m expecting a busy time this coming weekend, which means that I’m doubling up on prep work for now, as much as possible. For some reason I’ve found myself exhausted for most of this week, although I haven’t been sleeping any less than usual. Part of it is probably that, with sunset at 4:30, if you take an afternoon nap, it will look like midnight by the time you wake up. My internal clock doesn’t know where to turn anymore.

                My Halloweekend, I will say, was quite calm compared to some of my peers’. I went to a small party on Friday night that one of my friends had organized, and we decorated cupcakes and ate pizza and played catchphrase and talked. I headed home around eleven. Halloween day I slept in and chilled in my room – one of my favorite pastimes – and revised and lengthened a philosophy paper. A friend also came by the Quad with his baby daughter, so I got to meet and hold her for a little while. And another friend joined me for church again, so we lunched afterwards and discussed the idea of Halloween.

                I promise I’ll have more news next week, but for now, since I’ve pulled back on the extra-curriculars, I thought I would give you an idea of the actual content of my classes to try to give you a sense of what we’re actually studying. Here it goes:

                Music: We’re studying the first performance of Berlioz’s Fantastic Symphony in Paris. This week we’re discussing the final movement, where he takes the Gregorian chant Dies Irae – the Day of Wrath, or Judgement Day – and subverts it to make it into a witches’ dance to celebrate the death of the protagonist. The actual poem talks about how God’s mercy saves us from His wrath, but in the Symphony, the highest spirituality is romantic love, which has failed the protagonist, and so there is no one left to save.

                Intellectual History: We’re studying the Skeptics, who claim that, because your senses might be deceived, you really can’t know anything – except, of course for the statement I’ve just made, which you can be sure of. The ancient Skeptics took both sides of every argument instead of taking a stance on one side or the other, in order to get as close as possible to the truth. I admire their prioritizing finding the truth over winning the argument, but their position seems a little extreme.

                Philosophy: Speaking of extreme positions, we’re discussing a book that claims that you are, in fact, not a particular person, but only a very specific type of person. If someone killed you and replaced you with an exact duplicate, it wouldn’t matter; he or she would be just as much you as you are. After all, if any given human is just atoms arranged in a certain way, it can’t be that hard to copy. The idea that such a thing as a particular person exists is just an illusion; people disappear, in a way I suppose is appropriate to Halloween.

                Naval Engineering: At the moment, nothing too complicated; we’re learning how refrigeration and water purification systems work. The class has become much calmer and more low-key since the beginning of the semester.

                Finally, German and Arabic: In German we’re translating Nietzsche; he’s making fun of the English philosophers, as usual. The phrase of the week is “im Zaum halten” – to hold in check. In Arabic we’re discussing Political Islam, the idea that government and law should be based on Islam. As we discussed, I discovered that some of my classmates consider America to be a de facto Christian theocracy.

                Most of my free time lately has been spent sleeping, but I did go back and read some of my old fiction writing last night, and was pleasantly surprised to find I still liked most of it. Perhaps I’m now finally distanced enough to do some proper revision, if I can find time. For now, this blog is my creative writing of the week – enjoy!

Pictures: By the way, thank you to all those who have taken pictures of me along the way so I have something to offer besides selfies!

Bible study (with cookies):

 More foliage - it won't last much longer!

 Halloween decoration in the dining hall:

 Decorating cupcakes at the pre-Halloween party:

 This was mine. Someone asked me if it was a snowman; I'm just going to go with that...

 I get to walk through this every day on my way to class.

 The ivy is as green as ever!

 Sunset in Cambridge (before four o'clock in the afternoon!):

Aftermath

                I don’t know what it is about Boston (well, let’s be honest; it’s probably the climate), but I always spend most of the fall/winter here in a semi-sick condition, slightly under the weather but not really sick. Occasionally it will get worse, if I don’t get enough sleep or have a really busy week, or etc. This past week, due to midterms and a paper that is finally finished, was one of those times; I’m feeling better now, but I had a slight fever for a couple days. Consequently, I’ve spent most of my time indoors, in bed, so this blog isn’t as eventful as most.

                About the only place I went this weekend was to church. We sang quite a few more hymns than usual, including songs I don’t think I’ve heard in years. I didn’t realize how happy hearing them would make me; they remind me of sitting in church with my parents on Sunday nights growing up.

                Most of my weekend was spent memorizing. I found several websites on the internet that provide free lists of information on various subjects. I’ve heard arguments that rote memorization takes away the point of learning, and obviously, lists of facts aren’t everything; you can’t memorize your way into a philosophical argument. Still, you can’t theorize properly unless you already have the facts well in hand. I also happen to find memorization extremely enjoyable. So I’ve found the weekend very interesting, but it doesn’t translate very well into blogging.

                Since I didn’t do that much this week, I figured I’d end with a little more explanation about Harvard. I’ve put it in footnotes before, but perhaps it’s best to lay it all out in one place. So, here’s a rough outline that I hope makes sense:

                Harvard University was founded as a college in 1636 primarily to trail clergymen. Later on, the graduate schools were added, and the University gained an international reputation for its liberal arts college and graduate studies programs. During this time, Harvard Yard served as the center of classes and dorms for the College; over time, as the college expanded, more buildings had to be built, although the Yard is still the center of academic activity at the college.

                Some of these dorms were constructed along the Charles River, while others were converted from what was formerly Harvard’s female counterpart, Radcliffe College.  The residential college was converted into an administrative building and a set of dorms, which is now what we affectionately term “the Quad” or more officially “the Harvard-Radcliffe Quadrangle.” It’s a 20-minute walk from Harvard Yard, although a shuttle also runs between the Quad and the Yard at most hours of the day. There are also shuttles to the dorms on the River, since some of them are nearly as far away from the Yard as we are.

                This might also be a good time to compile some Harvard topographic terminology:

1. The Yard = Harvard Yard
2. The Quad = The Harvard Radcliffe Quadrangle
3. House = upperclassman dormitory
4. Dorm = freshman dormitory
5. Tudor = grad students who live in and semi-oversee the Houses
6. Proctor = grad students who live in and oversee the Dorms
7. House Master = professor overseeing the House
8. River Houses = group of Houses located between Harvard Yard and the Charles River
9. Quad Houses = group of Houses in the Quad
10. Quadling = resident of one of the Quad Houses
11. “Quad Life” = can have different meanings, depending on intonation, but generally refers to the inconvenience of having to walk twenty minutes to get anywhere

All freshman are required to live on campus and live in Dorms, most of which are around Harvard Yard. A few are further away and are occasionally referred to as “the freshman Quad Houses”. Upperclassmen may live off campus or in special housing, but the majority stay on campus in the Houses. All upperclassmen Houses are part of either the River or the Quad block.

It’s also good to note that Harvard isn’t closed off from Cambridge; it intermixes with the city. You’ll pass a Harvard dorm, and then a bunch of independent businesses or a residential area, and then a Harvard Class building, and then a shopping center, and etc. It’s hard to tell where Harvard stops and Cambridge begins.

I hope this helps you put these posts in context!

PS - I entirely forgot to mention that, while I didn't do much this weekend, a little while back I attended a talk at the Harvard Club of Boston (which was much more grand than I was expecting). The talk wasn't that interesting, but they did have some good show-and-tell items:

 This is an engraved cup presented to William James (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_James) by his students - I'm the one holding it.

 This is as close as I got, but this is one of the (apparently very few) death masks of Pascal (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blaise_Pascal).

 Sunrise over Boston:

 These are some pictures from the last time I went jogging, before the weather turned cold and damp.

 This is where the apples from the apple-picking a couple weeks ago ended up - in our Bible Study group.