Earth Science Department Alumni Award

We celebrated yesterday David's honor of the Earth Science Department Alumni Award! This is awarded to an individual who has a high likelihood of success in the field.

On our way to Cookeville, we descended down into Sequatchie Valley:



And went up Cagle Mountain:



And of course the main pictures to see, David and his award! Congratulations to David-we are so proud of your accomplishments and academic success!

Earth Science Winners

David with Award Certificate

50 students honored from 10 departments of the College of Arts and Sciences

Gordonsville Mine Paper

My son David is now an upperclassman in college and a student and a teaching assistant in the Department of Earth Sciences.  He recently completed a huge mid-term project for Geology 4200 about the Gordonville's mine complete with several pages of hand-drawn section of cores and cross-sections of mining, and prediction of where to drill cores for future mining.  Pretty impressive. And a well-written paper. The entire mid-term project got an A.

Drag Idolatry

So proud of my daughter for tackling the tougher newspaper assignments. Pictured is her article on the campus Drag Idol based something like American Idol. She and the photographer got the entire Features page for this effort!

Gave Me Rhythm, Gave Me Cadence

When I am looking for answers, many times I press the Google Earth icon on my iPad. The rotating globe of the Earth flashes onto the iPad screen as Earth becomes bigger. The program is defaulted to fly home. And visually I am flying as the Earth rotates and zooms toward middle North America. Blurry close up images become clearer as Google Earth slowly stops the spinning and brings a clear focus about 300 feet above a place out in the country. In Kansas. I am hovering over home.

The farm. Over 100 years in the Hunter family. Probably a transitory home to roaming bison with the occasional arrowhead being found. And back when Kansas was underwater in prehistoric times, definitely home to large fish by the teeth and fossils found.

This Saturday, April 6, marks the end of home.

I have reasoned logically that this was the right thing to do. For my parents especially the right thing to do.  I had left the farm as a young boy to become a preacher kid. I left the state of Kansas to go to college. Partially motivated to go somewhere that no one knew me before. I came back to Kansas for two short years at KU. Then I was gone again and never came back as a resident; only a visitor.

But looking at maps, and eventually looking through Google Earth, at the farm location always gave me rhythm, gave me cadence in life.

Sure I can continue to look. Saturday won't change the location nor the landscape. But will looking at it from above on Google Earth still be the same?

Not being there makes it difficult. But I know preparing for Saturday hasn't been easy for my parents and my sisters. Moving, packing, hauling. A lot of work. And a lot of Hunters have passed through this land completing a lot of work. That is not easy to let go.

There are memories. But fading memories in many ways. Memories, though, never drove me home. I went home in my mind because that's where I am. I am from Kansas, in the country, finding my own solutions.

A book closes, a movie ends, but the past remains.

Update 4/12/13: It doesn't feel the same now looking through Google Earth or on the map.

Some of the limestone walls from the old house remain in the current house.

The spring: giving forth water.