My "scape" is #30 on the Bryn Mawr College Tree Tour:





A student in my ESem told me about it last semester--that it's labeled "Serenity" but is known (among you all?) as "the pot tree."

Obviously this past year has been quite eventful in terms of issues surrounding diversity, multiculturalism, and issues of access to power in and around the Bi-Co. For example, the killing of Mike Brown, Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, and many other people of color by police sparked many important conversations and events about race in the Bi-Co. However, one race-related topic which I wish received more attention is the decreasing number of faculty of color at Haverford. Based on reading makalaforster’s post, it seems like this is also an issue at Bryn Mawr. However, I know very little about this topic at Bryn Mawr, so I am going to focus my post on Haverford.

For my scape, I've chosen the little creek behind Batten House in the woods. I know I live in Batten right here, but part of the reason I decided to choose this particular spot is because even though I live here and I've spent so much time on the back porch of Batten looking out on the "jungle" (as I call it because it's just so green and lucious and covered in vines in the spring/fall/summer), I've only ever actually explored the jungle myself once before at night. It's strange having lived here for an entire semester and not having explored the woods behind it thoroughly, despite my deep appreciation for it's beauty.

I have always been drawn to the Labyrinth that sits next to the hill in front of Rhoads since my first visit at Bryn Mawr College. I remember how deceiving the journey to the center of the labyrinth looked. I am a very spiritual person. I believe spirituality is the domain of awareness where we are mindful of our experiences, emotions, and time. Spirituality takes us out of the present and brings us into an introspective state of identity where we explore the path behind us, how far we have gone, and where it might lead. Some may think that their lives are like labyrinths while others think that their lives are like mazes. Both have twists and turns, however, a labyrinth only has one path.

For my "scape", I have chosen to revist the Bryn Mawr Labryinth and walk the path in and out. I still can't get over how strange the location of it is. I hope that revisiting this site each week will give me some insight into what was hoped to be achieved by placing the labyrinth where it is now.  

After meandering around three different sites, I settled down near an uprooted tree off of the nature trail. It’s one of the quieter outdoor spaces on campus, just far enough from bustling traffic and bustling people, enough to escape the mental cycles of busy-ness I often fall into. Standing, I can see the concrete half-cylinder skating rink just beyond the nature trail through the naked trees, and turning around, the tops of the Tritton and Kim dorms. It feels removed regardless, and I get the sense that I am in a distinct place, home to many others than myself. The snow around is filled with animal tracks. I’m excited to experience this sliver of forest emerge from winter and move through spring.

For my scape I chose a place that is part of one of my favorite parts of campus but also contradicts it. The row of oaks making up senior row is abruptly broken by an American Beech about two-thirds of the way down that isn’t part of the “row” proper.  You can’t see in this picture because the foliage is plentiful, but beneath and around this tree sit two benches and two perpendicular pieces of fence that don’t actually fence anything in. It forms such an odd space, especially compared to neatly aligned trees next door.

For my scape, I chose the 'Romeo and Juliet' balcony that is on the backside of Goodhart. At first, the reason my mind went to that was because during the first couple weeks of being at Bryn Mawr, I experienced many (wonderful) memories in that area - meeting new people, having really good conversations, and just sitting by myself, soaking in the fact that I was finally in college. 

I have chosen the four stepping-stones near the willow tree overlooking the duck pond as my scape. I feel close to the water here. It’s peaceful, tucked away as it’s own little corner of the world. It’s my secret hiding spot. I remember when I was a little girl; I had at least half a dozen secret hiding spots in my house. My favorite was the back of my mom’s closet—silk skirts would tickle my legs as I tried to balance on top of black stilettos. It was a place where I felt a sense of ownership, because no one else knew about it.

For my scape, I chose the hill that overlooks the athletic fields. I sat in a bench under the trees. I couldn't find a picture of my scape, and I didn't want to just point to it on a map, so I attached a selfy that I took a few months ago under my favorite tree there. A thing that I like about this selfy is that the exposure is adjusted to show the tree clearly; my face is overexposed. So though my face is techically in the foreground, the tree is in focus. Today when I sat under the tree, it was less green than the photo I attached. The sun was out though, and the snow was melting. I'm traveling this weekend, so I had my bag with me and it was hard for me to focus. I was excited to get off campus.