Yesterday I stepped foot on Bryn Mawr College soil for the first time since I walked out on graduation day in May 2005. I vowed to myself that before coming back to my alma mater (in Latin, “nourishing mother”), I would have to do something with my life. Well, within the past five years I know that at least I lived up to my goals of earning a Master’s and traveling and teaching more, but now I was back to visit the Career Development Office (CDO) with the hope of hearing some words to nourish and encourage me as I embark on Job Hunt Take II Act I. As I turned on Yarrow Street and caught a glimpse of the Bryn Mawr College sign, I was overcome with nostalgia. Bryn Mawr College’s Gothic architecture is quite old, but it never felt that way as a student because as I lived in it, its stones, steps, and walls lived with me. However, having aged five years and not returning even once in that time span, I felt like I had seasoned with the architecture and as I walked on the cobblestone and passed through the main archway, I was walking through my history. I paused in front of Pembroke archway where there was a little door that led to a small spiral staircase into the main dance studio. Modern dance classes with Linda and Mady and jazz and hip hop sessions with Yasmin flashed in my mind. As I walked towards Thomas Great Hall I could almost hear the a cappella songs and orchestral music as well as the poets and writers I used to listen to in that hall. During my CDO meeting, my advisor’s last words were “don’t be too hard on yourself.” And, this evening after fb chatting with a friend, I gave her a recap and she replied that we Mawters always have difficulty easing up on ourselves. When I visited the alumnae office where I worked, I was happy to find that many of my former advisors were still there, enthusiastic and never missing a beat. One of my advisors gave me the name of an alumna of Chinese heritage who I will try to contact soon. Her name sort of reminded me of a character in the film I re-watched last week, Kill Bill Vol. 2. I am now on a mission to find her and speak with her so that she can give me the secrets of the job hunt and the five-point-kill-the-interview technique. I hope that this job search does in fact lead somewhere. Take it from Pai Mei in the movie, “It’s the wood that should fear your hand, not the other way around. No wonder you can’t do it. You acquiesce to defeat before you even begin.” The world is my wood (or the wood is my world), and I am ready to live up to my Asian stereotype and karate strike my way into it!
(Pembroke arch)
(sitting on senior steps at Taylor)
(Thomas Great Hall)
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