Hope that light at the end of the tunnel isn't a train coming through

A friend emailed this morning to remind me of a horrible thing that happened back in January, and I responded, "Remember when you thought that was the worst problem you'd face this year?" There's a dose of perspective! We've survived one horrible thing after another, and although  the year isn't over yet, I see light at the end of the tunnel.

One more week of teaching before finals! Nearly all of my quarantining students have returned to class and our official campus Covid counter says we're down to only six active cases and 61 recovered cases. I'm tempted to say we've dodged a bullet--but again, the semester isn't over yet.

And yet it feels over. I'm counting down the few lessons left to prep and the final assignments still coming in, and every item I check off my list feels like a step toward triumph. My students sit there stunned in class as if this semester has beaten every ounce of energy out of them, but they'll pull themselves together to finish those final projects like the troupers they are.

For days I've been holding one-on-one Zoom conferences with various students to discuss their final projects and I find myself saying the same things over and over--points that I've covered in class but that many students seem to feel don't apply to their personal situations--and I am so tired of staring at the screen that I'd like to tear my eyeballs out with a fork. But that would be bad, not least because I've just had one set of stitches removed from my face and I really don't need another set. (Not skin cancer! Just a benign lesion caused by sun damage! Slather on that sunscreen, kiddos!)

In other good news, today I had the extreme pleasure of sending out letters from the tenure and promotion committee recommending deserving colleagues for tenure and promotion. The committee works really hard but the reward is the opportunity to make a difference in colleagues' careers, and sending out those affirming letters first thing this morning put a smile on a bunch of faces, mine included.

Good news for my colleagues, good news for my face, and a shortening list of things to do before this bizarre and exhausting semester becomes history--if I weren't so exhausted, I'd be tempted to do a little happy dance. It's dangerous to celebrate prematurely, because what if that light at the end of the tunnel turns out to be an express train heading our way?

Better do that happy dance now before it's too late!