Eisenhower Chapel, Through a Veil of Color

Storms came through on Sunday night, ushering in a cold front that would bring us this gift: some of the first, truly autumn-like weather. Monday morning was gray, but the day turned breezy, and by Monday afternoon, it was simply glorious out. Sunny, with blue skies and bright sunshine, but a bit chilly; time to put on a sweatshirt or light jacket.

I am taking the rest of the week off to enjoy the great weather and celebrate our wedding anniversary, but I worked Monday. I went into the office in the morning to tidy up some details, but Monday afternoon, I had signed up for a workshop on 3D printing, to learn about all of the innovative ways it is being used at Penn State.

I had already visited the Arboretum first thing in the morning to see the pumpkins, so this was one of those days my car and I ended up there TWICE. My afternoon event began at 1 in Foster Auditorium at Pattee Library. So around 12:30, I parked at the Arboretum and walked across campus.

There is a construction project I hadn't seen before going on near the Forum. A little sitting area with tables, chairs, and a canopy has sprung up beneath the water tower near the arts building complex. I guess I haven't been on central campus (other than my NLI bisque date in the rain last week) in more than a month!

Young lovers were canoodling by the Forum. There was a sign saying Arts Day in front of the Palmer Museum, with live music, and a student group with displays about recycling and sustainability. I stopped for a few minutes to look and listen. Isn't it wonderful to find live music in unexpected places?

And then this was my view as I rounded the corner and headed down toward Pattee. First off, I must say this: the trees on campus are still mostly green, with the occasional standout. The colors seem to be arriving late this year. But there is a fine and lovely tree that puts on quite a show each year, and suddenly there it was in front of me, its foliage like a veil between me and Eisenhower Chapel.

The light was behind the tree and the leaves were blowing in a soft breeze. I couldn't resist a few shots, including the one above. You can barely see the chapel for the colors! This is a thing that those who have not experienced autumn in the northeastern U.S. do not know: how the foliage colors light up the world like nature's very own stained glass windows.

The 3D printing workshop was amazing, and my mind was blown with the variety of things I learned. 3D printing is being used to innovate in so many fields: engineering, architecture, arts, medical uses, humanitarian areas. Wow, is about all I can say.

There was a 15-minute break in the program at 3 pm, and I seized the opportunity to make very QUICK visits to two different displays in the Libraries: first, a collection of the books and papers of William Styron, whom I heard read a piece from his book, Sophie's Choice, many years ago when he visited Penn State.

And second, a photography display called The Painted Photograph. Here is a bit from the news piece that went out about it: "Long before Photoshop and Instagram filters, photographers in the 19th and early 20th centuries enhanced their work with water colors, oil paints, chalk, charcoal and crayon."

I visited and photographed quite a few of the several hundred items included in the display, despite the terrible lighting in the room. Yes, I did a lot with my 15 minutes! My advice is this: don't wait until you have "enough time" to do the things you want, as there will NEVER be enough time; do what you can with the time you have. You might be surprised how much you can pack into even the tiniest slot of time.

I left the event late in the afternoon with all kinds of thoughts swirling in my brain (as SHOULD be the case when you hang out at a University): 3D printing innovations, live music on a sunny afternoon, painted pictures, the words of William Styron.

But I had one last stop before making my way back to my car: I picked up two milkshakes at the Berkey Creamery, death by chocolate ("DEATH SHAKE!" hollered my cashier back to the shake-makers) and peanut butter swirl, one for my husband and one for me. And then my day ended just as it began, at the Arboretum. And how can you beat that?

For the soundtrack . . . I know I've used this song twice before, but it's the only one that will do. Here is Colors of the Wind, from the Disney film Pocahontas.