make change not to do lists

Tarshia L. Stanley

We are already a week into the new year. For many academics this also means the new semester is beginning--despite the polar vortex--this week and next. As I look at all the things that I didn't get to check off my to-do list in 2013, I'm very proud to say launching the OEB Society is not one of them!

I'm so glad to finally have connected with a group of people who see not only the importance of Butler's work but the value of organizing a society around it. I am especially glad to have allowed myself to move in this direction in my scholarship. I spent so many years admiring Butler's work, but not incorporating it into my scholarship because I am a "film and visual media" person. I didn't think I had the background in speculative fiction or the time to really study her work in a professional way. Then came OEB's untimely passing in 2006 and I deeply regretted that I did not get to meet her. Wait--let me change that. I regretted that I did not make the time to meet her. I kept thinking it would happen--one day. I kept moving it to my new year's to-do list.
As I looked at this year's list of things I really want to accomplish, I asked myself what would Lauren or Lilith or Dana put on their "things to do in 2014" list. While I'm still thinking about what Lilith and Dana would say, I'm sure that Lauren would write: Make Change--Not to-do lists! I'm also sure  Ms. Butler would concur.
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What would your favorite character from a Butler novel put on their to-do list this year?