Imagine you're a new freshman at Stanford. You're moving into your dorm, Larkin, and on move-in day (which for freshmen was earlier this week) you walk up to a table in front of your dorm to get your key. Standing behind that table is the person in this picture (except she's about 18 years older now and wears a tag that identifies her as an R.A. in your dorm). With a big smile (see photo above) and loads of enthusiasm she calls you by name and welcomes you to Larkin - before you ever told her who you were. And you wonder ..... how did she know your name? (All the other staff know your name too.) The answer is that over the past couple of weeks, they've all memorized your name and face, and that of all 100 freshmen in the dorm, from the photo you sent in when you registered for school. During that time they've also been planning all sorts of events and activities to make your freshman year one you'll never forget. It takes boundless energy to make all that happen. (And as for me, I get tired just thinking about it.) But it's the kind of thing that Mary loves to do. When I was flipping through old photo albums looking for a picture for today's Flashback, this one made me pause and it made me smile because it shows how Mary's always been - so full of so much energy and happiness (as well as dressing in Stanford colors) - which is why she's going to be a great R.A. When class starts on Monday the excitement of orientation will be over, but the work is just beginning. I know this girl - and the 100 lucky freshmen in Larkin - will have a great year!
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