Don’t you agree that last days of class are always special? For one, it means, another year of school has been completed successfully. On another note, it means that the break is at hand, and if I wasn’t busy with all that other school work, I’d definitely be having more time for leisurely things. And, of course, it means I get to send off my students to a new chapter of life, where they pass on from their freshman state of existences to something a little more substantial: they get to be sophomores! Anyways, I feel a huge sense of relief wash over me, whenever I wake up to the last day of class.

Graduation is always a bittersweet occasion. Of course, it’s the celebration of the completion of our students’ years at university, and that’s a happy thing. And yet, at the same time, it also means farewell from those students who we have gotten to know a little closer, and that is a less pleasant event. Yet, every year, it’s time to say good-bye to thousands of students, and this year it’s no difference.

It’s homecoming season. And that always means parades and the famous homecoming ceremony. And that of course means show time. Students (and teachers) of the art departments get to show off their talents as they dance, sing, and perform whatever other skills they have, and we get to enjoy a somewhat grand performance. Chinese style, of course!