The Fountain is ON

It's a sure sign of springtime!  This video uses some footage out of context but the message is clear.  They are turning n the fountain this week.  And by "they" I mean Yale.  The fountain discussed here is actually the Women's Table, by Maya Lin, and it's there for a reason.

The reason that the fountain is there?  It's because Yale began admitting women in 1969, and every year the number of women enrolled at Yale has changed throughout the years.  Every year is accounted for, and the count ends in 1993, the year the fountain was installed.

As a point of interest, when the fountain is on, kids can't actually run around and play on it.  It's discouraged to use as a slip and slide.  But it does have an interesting effect:  when the water flows over the edge of the marble, it actually holds on to the wall, even though it's curved inward.  So the water has this defiance of gravity feature to it, which I suppose is part of the genius of Maya Lin, for incorporating that feature into the fountain.  It obviously symbollzes the gravity-defying resilience of women who have attended the University, in hopes that maybe they might make the world slightly better.  Let's hope!

Photo Credit:  Michael Morand

If you can find the fountain, good for you.  It's around here somewhere!  Enjoy the springtime weather, and just remember that whenever you walk by, you can drag your fingers through it.  Perhaps you can wash your hands in women's suffrage.

Michael Morand recently took the above photo, and announced "Sure sign of spring.  Fountain On," which is possibly the most concise way of putting it.

Here is the commemorative song, "Turn On The Fountain."  Enjoy!