eople influence us without their knowing and in ways unintended. Having been a student for 28 years (not that I have overstayed while earning four degrees and doing postdoctorate studies), I learned from my mentors about life more than they would ever know. Reversal of roles happens all the time as we grow and age. I was invited to speak in a three-day women’s conference on successful aging. Unexpectedly, Mrs. Shao Hui Cheng Tan, my high-school teacher in Chinese classics, walked up the stage to do the introduction of the speaker. A highly respected educator, she is known for her keen observation and careful choice of words, and I was a bit anxious. Slowly, her words made sense to me more than any introductions I have ever heard about me. Having attended my past seminars, she said I speak not about things I read only recently but things that I have thought through for a long time—insights that come by wide reading and soul searching. I was touched.
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