On Heriot Row

Here atop the 111 steps on Heriot Row is where my days begin and end. Every day presents a new challenge, a new opportunity to discover and to be enlightened. Realisations, learnings, theories - the lot. 

I'd left all these aspects of learning behind when I finished at university in 2010, but it's been a swift regathering exercise since. Of learning, yes, but in other aspects too - socialising, networking. Thoughts of what could be in the world and how to achieve it.

Reflections remain, but they're now at a more substantial level. Often days end with more questions than answers, but they're new questions that bring about different thoughts.

When the sun disappears with the temperatures, however, there's that little spot I can look back on and know that tomorrow is a chance to do it all again. Heriot Row.

The view of Dunedin from Heriot Row

Yes, if you haven't already noticed, I've become quite fond of my place in Dunedin almost two weeks after nana and I ended our four-day road trip from Picton to Dunedin. For most cities, temperatures are measured in degrees Celsius. For myself, I define a 'nice' or 'cold' day in Dunedin by the visible presence of my breath. As you can imagine, the 'Colds' are definitely outnumbering the 'Nices'

The thing with temperatures is, the colder it is outside, the more you appreciate the warmth inside and those that help create that warmth. I've been incredibly fortunate to have joined a centre, the National Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies, with so many friendly students and lecturers.

My first day spent wandering aimlessly around the centre was interrupted by a friendly interaction with a PhD student. She showed me around the area and kindly introduced me to the other, similarly friendly PhD students. The confidence gained from interacting with those studying at a higher level was infectious. I was ready to go.

Or so I thought. If Monday was a chance for me to gain some confidence and dominate proceedings in classes, my first seminar on Tuesday brought me straight back down to Earth.

Theories. Pedagogies. Examples of violence in education. Cultural violence. Galtung. Harris. Bajaj. Not only was I left feeling like the course wouldn't be one where I could learn at a comfortable level, but I felt like I was clutching onto a lifejacket in a pool of knowledge. A reality check at its harshest.

But those of you who have read my previous blog posts understand that's what part of the appeal for coming here in the first place was. The challenge of returning to university, of returning to a theoretical foundation for enlightement rather than a watercooler. Or the challenge of dealing with StudyLink.

And so come Wednesday, having looked back from Heriot Row the evening before, I checked out my second seminar and regained some confidence. It won't be an easy ride, but it'll be incredibly interesting. Who knows, you might even learn something along the way.

Aside from study, I've made a number of friends playing social rugby and popping up at a few social events. Transitioning into the academic way of thinking is something I'm striving for over the next 12 months, but not at the expense of my sanity or with the side-effect of loneliness. There have definitely been some fun nights out already, with karaoke, board games and a visit to the student bar in the mix. Like I told my mother on Thursday night, I'm pretty rapt with the company I keep.

And so now to Friday, where my first week has subsequently come to an end. Readings are taking place, assignments are on the mental radar and I'm armed with a remark that one of the lecturers gave in the second seminar. Peace and Conflict Studies courses are usually filled with people who want to change the world for the better. It's one of our only commonalities.

For some that may mean helping to establish more peace-building mechanisms in the Pacific, for others it could be the opportunity to eradicate cultural or structural violence. For others it might mean reforming StudyLink altogether.

That nugget, an unconscious collective agreement to bettering the world, is something I can't help but see in the other Masters students now for the future. We mightn't have much of a clue at present about  what we want to do for a dissertation due next year, for the in-class assignment next week or with the big essay due after mid-semester, but there is something we all have a common bond over. Changing the world for good.

And for me, that starts again tomorrow on Heriot Row.