All In the Family:
CMC Hosts Parents Weekend

A few weekends ago, CMC welcomed parents from all over the world. Before I knew it, the campus was brimming with pairs of adults donned in nametags and toting cameras. Despite my being a senior and hardly new at this whole college bit, my parents came for a visit, too. I had my own small entourage for a couple of days; two people who bore an uncanny resemblance to me and could not stop remarking on just how perfect CMC is.
My first Parents Weekend freshman year could not have been more exciting. I was thrilled to show off the new world in which I was thriving. I was able to show my parents where I had class and where I went to parties (rarely, of course). It felt great to provide evidence for them that, since they had dropped me off in August, I had learned my way around and actually met some people. Best of all, the appearance of parents meant a shopping adventure. In Claremont for only an hour, and they had already replenished my snack drawer.
I was close friends with many of the other freshmen in my dorm, and that first weekend our families gathered for dinner. Every Parents Weekend since, the Starks, the Schults, and the Wernets have gotten together for a meal. This year was no exception. It's rather nice having my parents able to chat about other parent things with other parent friends. Plus, it's a free meal for me.
By the time Parents Weekend rolls around senior year, you pretty much have no time for these people, even if they did spawn you. In my case, I was assigned a film project for my Pitzer "Intro to Video Production" class. That weekend, I was to record someone telling a narrative and insert ten cut-aways to another subject during this narrative. Wanting to spend time with my parents as well, the solution was obvious; Dad would star in the video. And star he did. Later when I showed the film in my class, my professor was desperate to know who the talented "actor" was.
This year I was also performing in the "Student Variety Show" during dinner at the Athenaeum. I directed a one act called Post-Its (Notes on a Marriage) and starred in another, Chocolate. Despite my heavy involvement in theatre at CMC, not since high school had my parents been able to watch me perform. I am convinced that it was made all the more fun for Mom, as I was costumed entirely in her cast-off clothing. I was thrilled to see Professor Diane Halpern of the Psychology Department at the Ath dinner show. I was finally able to introduce my parents to one of my favorite professors.
All in all, it was a great weekend on campus. I enjoyed myself immensely, and I think my parents did too. I'm just bummed I didn't get to go to Target with them. I've been holding off on buying things for months. These yearly visits don't stop when I graduate, right? --Katherine Wernet '11