By Henry Chang

Life in RR4

By Henry Chang….

Digging in RR4 is hard but enjoyable. I personally have a lot of passion for archaeology in a hope to find something unique and interesting. Nevertheless, working in RR4 teaches me what are the realities and what are not. After three weeks of digging in RR4, I realize that archaeology is not about finding wonderful stuff but about how to face the reality. Every single day, I go on the Tel with a lot of hope and faith that this square has something special inside; however, as time goes by, I figure that this square is full of rubbish with a mixed context. Working in this square requires one to have a heart full of passion in completing the whole puzzle of the Tel. I believe my work in RR4 is not meaningless. Through the works my team and I have done in this square, we know how the military, Mr. Dothan, and modern construction put the area into a mess. Despite the fact that I am working in a square that requires much hard work with vicious environment such as the sun, I still enjoy (a lot) working in RR4 because of two people in my square.

J.T. is my supervisor in RR4. He is the first person I know from this group. We met in the airport just because we wore the hat of Penn State. Finding him is like discovering a lost brother whom I have not seen for a long time. Like me, he is a person full of passion in archaeology. Despite my poor digging skill, he always tolerates me no matter how rebellious I am. He not only tolerates me a lot but also constantly teaches and shares his archaeological experience with me. I feel really lucky and thankful for J.T. to be my supervisor.

Rachel is my teammate in RR4. She is well known for her drawing skills, and it can be said she is our square’s art master. She has a skill to illustrate the rocks in the square perfectly on a paper; however, according to Jane, the position of the rocks is out of scale and measurement. Nevertheless, one cannot and should not doubt her drawing skills. I especially love her expression of a unicorn in a hamburger. Rachel is also the Miss D.J. for RR4. Her music is full of encouragement, which makes our life in RR4 easier. Mr. Brett took her from RR4 to go on survey for the past few days. During those days, J.T. and I felt very depressed because without Rachel’s presence in RR4, RR4 is not complete.

After reading my short description about RR4, one might be thankful that he or she is not working in RR4 since this is a really hard square to work in; however, you are wrong. We actually have so many fun in RR4 each and every day. I do not regret at all to work in this square because I have two super awesome people working with me. They are my motivation and inspiration to work in RR4. Love you guys!