the doctor is in.

Not only is she gorgeous, she's brilliant. And perhaps the kindest, most gracious, and most elegant woman I know.

That's my Rita. And today she received her Ph.D.

Rita, your friendship--all 13 years of it--has changed my life. And I feel honored to be a part of yours. I look back at our freshman year of college at Duquesne, and I can't believe that all these years later, I get to share in this day with you. To think that we spent time in college together, went our separate ways, ended up back at Duquesne for graduate school at the same time, and are now celebrating the end of a tremendous journey towards your Ph.D. makes my heart swell and my eyes fill with tears of the purest joy! Ours is truly a love story--a love story of friendship, devotion, literature, and triumph. And people wonder why we study stories as we do!


Thank you for never making me feel as though I wasn't smart enough for graduate school. Thank you for always supporting me and for making me feel that not going on for my Ph.D. was okay--that it didn't mean I wasn't smart enough, talented enough, or worthy of it. Thank you for helping me realize that a Master's Degree in Literature is nothing--nothing--to scoff at. Thank you for believing in me when I didn't think I could write another sentence, think another critical thought, articulate another idea.

Thank you for making me feel I have value...value beyond the Ivory Tower of the Academy.

And thank you for letting me share in your most special day. I am proud of you in a way that I will never find the words to express. My heart is overflowing for you today. And I know, without a doubt, that you are going to change the world. You are going to touch lives and inspire students, just as you have with me.

I love you, lady.

with love from Pittsburgh,
Laura