first moments within the walls of Oxford

at 7am I awoke to find that New Hinksey Primary was indeed among the long list of closed schools (but no panic ensued as my Oxford comparative lit. professor landlord assured me that Oxford was very keen on being kind to students that were also mums) & so while sleeping beauty slept I prepared two backpacks--one with loads of food, water, toys, markers, paper, 3rd grade math, books, & Simpsons dvds; the other with a pen, paper, map to the orientation building, and a beautiful packet of letters for Sabine Brigette about the specifics of having the privilege of being a budding Oxonian & we set off for the 8 hour orientation after some toast, yogurt, meusli, cocoa, & mocha.

at 9am passing the Radcliffe Camera, holding Naya's hand, and detailing to her how I know she will be quiet and that it will be hard for so many hours, but how it is essential not only for me (because I so badly want to hear what they are saying and feel excited and not irritated) but for other mothers who attempt to do the same after we have come and gone.

straight ahead, through the thick locked wooden doors, into a courtyard, under an archway, turn left, into another door, up a spiraling and ancient stairway & there we sat and were welcomed to what we've all just taken on by gaining acceptance into Oxford.  oh my.  so happy.  can't believe the privileges & expectations handed to each of us in that room by each of the speakers that came.  how will i ever leave?

lunch in Hertford Hall

(sorry, quick shot, cameras didn't exactly feel appropriate)

coffee break shot out of a window

from within Hertford's walls, out the wooden door, and then heading home at 5:15p

(what I wouldn't give for one of my shovels leaning on my back porch in WF just to help scrape off this skiff of snow that everyone is slipping on for lack of simple shovels...could have helped pay for my "privileges" if I had one)

walking to our bus stop,

naya is tired and i keep rubbing her back telling her she is such a good good kid, unbelievably capable

and within my own walls there are a thousand cedar waxwings alighting & flying in joyful, impossibly intricate dances in the air.

coolest bit of local knowledge gained today:  the Bodleian library owns most of subterranean Oxford to accommodate its vast shelves of books (it owns a copy of every published book as it is a copyright library) & since we have access to any one of them there is an underground train system just for retrieving the books for the students, which are then delivered to your reading room of choice.

smile.