pSearch Reflection

First of all, THANK YOU to Prof. Stern, Emma, Helen, Sam, Lizzy, Austin, Ben, and Dora for your efforts in making pSearch a compelling experience.

When I applied to pSearch a few months ago, I thought I would be doing the same thing at home, just at Duke University: sleeping late and working not-so-hard. The pSearch program allowed me to accomplish none of those things.

The time I once spent sleeping was quickly replaced by early C1 routes to The Edge, and then to Perkins Library, the Nasher Museum of Art, and the Rubinstein Arts Center. Lunches were pickled with fascinating professors drawing from all different kinds of fields. Even free time was spent thinking about research and the humanities. Amazingly, the pSearch program has managed to captivate my attention at every moment.

I still remember Professor Stern telling us to not be intimidated by the ideas and resources pSearch would introduce. Of course, I did not follow his advice. I was intimidated by what I didn’t know. I felt like I was perpetually stuck in the expressive exercise we conducted with Dr. OJ at the Rubinstein. I was boxed into one motion, even though the boundaries around me did not exist.

Although I’m still a terrible dancer, my experience with pSearch has greatly freed my mind. The thoughts and possibilities that once daunted me are now potential sources of information. Duke University has transformed from a strange and isolating place into a lively hub of intellectual exploration and flexibility.

I’m still in the Rubinstein Arts Center, trying to express myself, but I no longer feel locked. I tweak and adjust my movement iteratively and critically, thinking about my audience. Research can be a performance, but pSearch has really taught me that it is a practice.