Nothing has significantly changed about the weather but as soon as my brain hears February as part of the date I think Spring. Part of it is that I am now starting my seeds in my greenhouse. Just the ones that need starting 12 weeks before the last date of frost. Today begins my slow seedling march towards a spring garden. Today we start the eggplant at least the Japanese eggplant. In my zone. So it is still cold, still winter, but the slow march to spring begins. And now, we start the first prompt of February.
I think I need time to figure out why the professor dislikes him and why he isn’t in class before I can see the shape of this story.
Thursday, February 1st: He failed the test.
He failed the test. He knew it as he turned the pages in. Knew it before. Even as the bell rang and the proctor announced time was up, he knew he failed. He let them take the pages and he waited as they were counted against the students. When the tallies matched, they were allowed to leave. He stood and walked out with the others. There was silence until they passed through the exit, leaving the room behind. Then whispers snaked out.
Yesterday something happened. No one yet knew what. It happened late and involved officials. Whether those officials were law enforcement, medical or school officials no one was quite certain. Each rumor painted a different picture. They all knew that the end result was that Professor Garison was not the one giving them their final exam today.
He was torn as to what to think about that. He studied hard and did his best but for some reason the professor took an intense dislike to him. If called upon in class every answer he gave was deemed in adequate or incomplete. He could repeat exactly what the textbook said verbatim and the professor would declare it insufficient as an answer, deriding him for not even reading the necessary texts. Another student could do the same and be praised for their diligence.
For this test he studied the texts, he added additional material and spent more time in the library hunting out extra information. He knew that if he managed to pass this exam with a decent enough of a grade then he would pass the course and never have to see Professor Garison again. He was even willing to change his major to avoid the need to take any of the professors classes, he just had to get through this one without a failing grade.
No matter how much he worked, he somehow knew it was not going to be enough. That somehow he was going to fail. He wondered if he would be forced to take this class again with professor Garrison or if there was someone else who taught it that he could take in the following semester. He knew that even if he switched out his plans, this class would still be required.
He floated through the halls surrounded by rumors of the professor and what could have happened to him. No one knew anything, but it didn’t keep anyone from making suppositions. When they reached the exit and they exited the hallway, their tight cluster dispersed and the rumors seemed to fly off into the wind as they each went n to their next destination. Some went to another class, some home, some to work and others to unknowable destinations.
He had two more classes before he could leave campus and if he didn’t hurry then he would be late to his next one. It was located on the far side of the campus.
Ten til Midnight 