Hello, colleagues–

It’s been a while. Last year, I began thinking about my specializations within faculty professional development. And then my husband needed surgery (which I wrote about). And if that wasn’t enough, over the summer, I was diagnosed with cancer. I promise that this isn’t a health blog — and we’re both doing relatively well now. It also isn’t a blog about power. Really, it’s about faculty development.

But you know how one part of life flows into another.

I’ve always loved (LOVED!) Adrienne Rich’s poetry. One of my favorite poems is “Power,” about how Marie Curie’s illness and strength both came from the same source: her immersive passion for radioactive elements. Today we know that, right? Strength and weakness are often two sides of the same coin. Even Harry Potter talks about it.

These past months of exhaustion and illness have been tough work-wise, though I’m certainly on the upswing now. That’s one side of the coin. The other side is just how powerfully these months have helped me to understand certain parts of other faculty members’ experiences. The struggle to keep your intellectual passions (and your publication record) going while you’re exhausted. The struggle to actually practice self-care when everyone tells you to set work aside and take care of yourself. (I managed to do that for a few weeks — but it felt like an indulgence! I have infinitely many things to say about the emotions surrounding serious illness and work.)

If you read the last stanza of “Power” (which I’ve just read about five more times — it is *so* good!), you’ll feel the pain of Marie Curie denying her own weakness. We’re in a different era now, thank goodness. We can see the weakness and the power all in one.

Since faculty work & life as human beings flow into each other, and into so many other things as well, let’s explore these things. I’m glad you’re here.