Whew! Where did the time go?

Fifteen weeks certainly flew by this semester!  West Texas is always windy, but this time there was a veritable whirlwind that passed through the law school.

My students are hunkered down in the second week of exams.  The first-year students finished yesterday, so the student numbers in the building have dropped today.  By tomorrow afternoon when all of the finals for the big required courses are over, the ranks will thin down to just a few students with elective exams to take before the week ends.  Saturday is hooding ceremony.  Next week it will be a ghost town.

So this is project time.  I am slowly checking off my list of things for which there is never time during classes.  As a one-person office, I always have a "wish list" that needs extra pairs of hands to complete.  Now in the brief lull is when I can turn to those items.  Prioritizing is necessary once again.  I know that some items will remain on my "wish list" for another semester, but that is okay.  There will be another lull in May.

As I look back over my appointment calendar for the past semester, I am heartened by the progress that many students made in their study skills.  It has been rewarding to hear them talk of being better prepared for finals this time around, getting their first good result on a midterm or paper, or feeling less anxious about the semester's outcomes.  The thank you e-mails that have begun to show up in my inbox cause me to forget how tired I am.

During the lull and the days while the university is closed, I'll recharge and begin to look forward to another semester.  Then, I'll rejoin the whirlwind.  (Amy Jarmon)