For some reason I awoke thinking of a story that I neglected to put into my essay on Dr. G. In the middle of the class I was sitting in on, a cell phone began to ring. A painfully young-looking first year in the front row turned beet red and began fumbling through his backpack, apologizing profusely. He looked mortified, and was clearly expecting to be yelled at. No yelling occurred. Instead, Dr. G. said, �That reminds me. I forgot to turn off my cell phone too. Of course, all of our cell phones need to be off before class begins,� and he strode across his room to his coat, hanging on the wall next to my seat. He pulled his phone from his pocket, where I could clearly see that it was already off, something I�m fairly certain he knew before walking over to his coat.. He pushed a button and put it back in his pocket and resumed teaching.

The gesture struck me as profoundly generous. He took the brunt of the embarrassment off the student and onto himself and instead treated it almost as if the student had done him a favor by reminding him of a policy he�d forgotten to mention. The sole purpose was to make the student � all the students, really � feel more comfortable. It was nice to see.

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I�m hoping it isn�t some kind of omen that Mt. Saint Helen�s erupted at almost the exact moment that I booked my flight to Seattle in November. A few weeks ago, I was discussing the recent spate of hurricanes in Florida, where he lived until August. �I bet you�re glad you left when you did.� He pointed out that he also left New York right before 9/11/01. I told him I wasn�t at all certain that I wanted to be in the same city with him for the conference, but he reminded me that all should be well as long as I leave before he does. Perhaps that�s what encouraged me to contemplate an overnight flight home. Nothing like a 5 a.m. arrival at O�Hare!

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I�m heading outside to try to put the garden in order before we get a frost, which is likely to be tonight or tomorrow. I still haven�t finished my fall planting and transplanting. I love having the garden to remind me of the seasonal changes. A few of the summer flowers are hanging onto their blooms, like my amazing delphiniums that just won�t quit. But for the most part, everything is sliding into reds and browns and golds. AJ and I spent a long time this morning watching a squirrel run to and from his hole in the tree outside my bedroom window with his cheeks stuffed with the walnuts and acorns that have been clattering down around us on all sides. It�s a good day for hot chocolate by the fireplace. But first, I rake.

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