Ch 60: And it would be the last time he set foot in those halls...

The last flower I wore was red, after sporting both pink and white ones on previous occasions as is tradition during exam times in Oxford. I finished my final exam as a graduate student at the end of Trinity term; the last full academic term during my program. The feeling was one I am sure not unusual for many in my position. One of relief. One of joy. And an unexpected degree of sadness. The kind that you get when you know you are near the closing of a great journey. Temporary but memorable.

It reminded me of a line from one of my favorite novels the Lord of the Rings. As Aragorn departed from woodlands of Lothlorien, the narration commented that it would be “the last time he set foot in those lands”. It was a statement of incomplete closure to me. When I first read it as a kid, I was a bit sad to know that such a great place was destined to be experienced only once but also assuring to know that that one visit was enough. Part of me wanted to read more about these wonderful lands left behind, but another part understood that greater deeds were to be done in places still far away.

Fare well exam schools. You represent the beginning of the exit from a great land and what had been a wonderful experience for me. I am not the first, and certainly will not be the last to sweat it out in these halls (it can get hot in full suit, tie, and subfusc). Onward East!