At Least He's Still a Bear

Good news! My son received a letter of acceptance from Cornell University and will be heading to Ithaca, New York, as a freshman come Fall 2016 as part of Cornell's class of 2020. He also received the Posse scholarship which generally pays for his tuition for the next four years. Needless to say, I and the Mrs. are very proud of him. Way to go Zach!

To celebrate, the banner of Paul Redux was change to

Cornell colors until the start of Zach's Fall 2016 semester

and then I'll revert back to the older orange banner (or may be not!)

The awards ceremony was this early part of January, but I simply held off on announcing the good news until we all heard from Zach's friends and what schools they received acceptance. In case you're not a parent with a senior in high school, April 1st (no it's not a joke) is the day when most universities inform students of their admission. 
   I've included a photo of us celebrating the receipt of his scholarship at Posse (so it was not a dream!). I'm very grateful for the Lord's provision and encouraged by Zach's hard work. He also has his own literary blog entitled Montag's Musings (check it out!). 
   There is also the added bonus that Cornell University has a first class philosophy department in the same building as the English Department which houses the creative writing major that Zach is interested in. So when I do get a chance to visit Zach on campus, I just might mozy on down to Goldwin Smith Hall and see if I could connect with professors Tad Brennan and Gail Fine whose works on the Stoics and Platonism I have read and appreciated. 
    If I have any regret, a part of me wishes he could have gone to Cal Berkeley like Su and I did way back when, but at least he's still a bear, though a red one!

Photo Credit: Thanks to my younger son Jonathan for taking this pic

On the Road at Cornell University

I don't mean to stay away from blogging but I'm in New York right now, putting on my father's cap, supporting my oldest son as he explores the Cornell University campus. It's a very nice day today, and I'm enjoying my time out here at the Kungfu Tea cafe (there's one in Chicago Chinatown, and we were delighted to find one in the Collegetown area of Ithaca!) while Zach is meeting Cornell students and exploring the campus on his own before I catch up with him later.
   Also, Zach has his own literary blog "Montag's Musings" and one of his poems not only received the 2015 Special Rutledge Award but it was published in Summer/Fall 2015 issue of the Great Lakes Review, a professional writers' journal. Way to go Zach! Zach will be posting a draft version of the winning poem "Berwyn Battles" later on his blog.

Great Lakes Review, Volume 6 (SumSpr 2015)
where Zach's "Berwyn Battles" is published
(see pages 172-75)

    After our college trip is over, I'll probably post on my choices for the upcoming SBL-AAR annual meeting in Atlanta this November. Many fantastic sessions coming up, and I'm looking forward to catching up with mentors, colleagues, and friends there. Blessings! MJL

   Postscript 11/12/15: Zach just posted on his poem at Montag's Musings (here).