Remembering Reed Wadley--"... and you will.".(In memoriam)

In my mind today, I can hear those three short words just as I did during my Ph.D. qualifying exam. The goal that day was for a committee to identify my weaknesses--a necessary, but unpleasant rite of passage--and we had been at it for several hours. A professor posed a question to me, prefaced with, "When you do your research in Kalimantan ...," and Reed leaned over and spoke those three words, quietly but with confidence and great conviction. At that time, he had been diagnosed with cancer, and although I was the eternal optimist throughout his illness, part of me was gripped by fear and uncertainty. I did not expect to see him that day, knowing that he was in significant pain and undergoing treatment, but he came. He must have understood my apprehensions on a day that he knew would be difficult for me (he knew me to be a perfectionist). His presence and his few words meant more to me than I think he knew and more than I was ever able to express to him.

As a mentor, Reed was always more likely to pose a challenge, ask questions, and present alternative perspectives than he was to offer easy praise. There were always ways to improve, new skills to acquire, new possibilities and ...