The last few days of the AIJI Institute were ones in which I could hardly concentrate. I had not been able to reach my daughter the entire week. Finally I called her father, a task which is a daunting to me as crossing Antarctic in winter time. She had been hospitalized on Monday and no one had bothered to call me. She, of course, could not. After finding out on Wednesday were she was, I was told as well, that she would get out that day. Thursday, a call to check, she was not out yet but expected to be that day. Would graduation ever get here. Finally the ceremony over, I called yet again. Still in the hospital. I gave up the side trip to Sioux Falls that I had allowed myself as the reward for getting through the institute.
I headed for I-90, which would get me to Rapid sooner. I pulled in Friday night, too late for visiting hours and almost decided to go to her room anyway. I knew I would be stopped by hospital personnel so I waited til morning and went early. She was on the mend, but running a temp yet, so I sat with her Sarturday and Sunday untill she finally was released Sunday evening.
Teen-agers bound back so quickly but this had been nearly a week long stay in the hospital for her and she will need time yet at home to recover.
Finally, I reached home on Sunday night. After the challenge of AIJI and the challenge of my daughter's hospitalization, here at last were the challenges of home. How I will answer these personnal challenges I have yet to figure out. They are the hardest that I face in my life.
But on to Monday and back to work. I do now, however, browse all of the major daily newspapers on line to test the skills that I have learned at AIJI. I actually saw an article about someone visiting Pine Ridge in the New York Times today. I made a comment on the article, something I would not have done before. Yesterday there was an article about a child that has been barred from school because she is of color. The school she wants to attend is operating under the mandate of the Supreme Court's quota decisions. The article was of actual use in a class that is currently being taught in the Graduate Program called School Law. As I type the article is being discussed in the class.
Now a few days have passed and all that has been attained through the AIJI program has to be put to good use.
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