It’s October; I cannot believe it.  Granted it’s only the third today of the month but still, a whole four weeks have passed by and so much has happened.  I’m quite sure that I’ve reevaluated my life a hundred times over since the last time I wrote a blog post; however, I will not bore you with the details of each singular contemplation.

Instead, I shall sum up what I’ve learned…so far, I’ve pointed out the obvious change in month, I believe that bodes well for the future content of this post. Don’t you agree?

September was a grand month.  My brain identifies it as a busy blur while October is shaping up to be the bane of my second year.  Paper season came early this year and it brought with it a seemingly unending state of fatigue, limitless reading assignments and copious amounts of commitments.  Everyone wants to meet to discuss their club, paper or pitch within the next three weeks.  Sometimes it seems as if Reading Week cannot get here fast enough; regardless of the packed quality of my schedule I was taught to never wish my life away so I’m content living in my present situation.

Currently, I’m enjoying a respite from classes, work and essay writing in my College’s lounge.  It’s the epitome of class and sophistication.  Well, actually it’s better described as the ideal location for a group of young intellectuals who dream of changing the world through advocacy, art and a lack of apathy.

We can seem to be a pretentious set, I won’t deny that for a minute, but you have to understand that when you read Great Books they don’t seem quite as great if you cannot share them.  In the Humanities program we consult, refute and accept each others opinions in equal turns; we challenge each other to be better, wiser, faster, stronger…well, intellectually stronger at least.

My HUMS kids were the ones who toasted me on my birthday when I had my first drink of the night (incidentally it was the last drink too); that was a night to celebrate our connections not to party like crazy.  Many of us are old beyond on our years, I’d love to be in bed and asleep by 7:00pm each night but alas art history, philosophy and literature courses keep me up late.

I think that I may take to calling October “HUMS season” because of how aptly this specific month fits the typical Humanities student. Yes, each of us is a unique and precious individual; however, we are also all human and according to Glaucon in the Republic that means ALL WE ARE IS APPETITE. That was a little slice of wisdom from my morning discussion group where we spoke about Book II of the Republic, but I digress.

Humanities students generally all love to read (Why else would you enrol in a Great Books program?); some adore music (lesser known bands are popular but Top 40 is still easily findable on the majority of iPods or MP3s); some watch foreign films in different languages while others delight in the brilliance of Scorsese or marathon Peter Jackson movies (movie nights are great fun – the sarcastic commentary alone is worth attending for); and there are really spiffy dressers in HUMS (but we all love to rock our Humanities sweaters when we just don’t have time to pull together a runway worthy look in the morning). I realize that that list was rather random, slightly convoluted but hopefully, all around it was entertaining or at least informative. Now you know how we feel in our lectures at times. Oh, and we tie into Fall because we’re each unique leaves but in the end we all grow on the Tree of Knowledge. Or the Ground of Knowledge, because you know in Fall leaves fall, on the ground.

I’m in a very reflective mood right now if you can’t tell. What with Thanksgiving coming up soon I think I’m simply getting into the thankful mood early. The opportunity to study at the College of Humanities is definitely one of the best blessings I’ve ever received.

Where else would you encounter ukelele serenades, hilarious puns, spontaneous dramatic readings of Shakespeare and people who love to discuss Marvel or Project Runway as much they enjoy talking about Socrates and Rousseau? HUMS is unique. And I love it.

Happy HUMS season everyone!