Robert Sedgwick – 50th Reunion Essay

Robert Sedgwick

20 Chestnut Street, #607

Cambridge, MA 02139

rsedgwick@msn.com

Spouse(s): Jane Clapp Sedgwick (1973–2009)

Child(ren): Emily (1977); Miles (1980)

Grandchild(ren): Louise (2008); Oscar (2010); Kalinda (2014)

Education: Harvard Graduate School of Education, Ed.D. (1991)

National Service: Peace Corps (1969–1971)

Career: Clinical Neuropsychologist

Avocations: Tennis, jogging

College: Ezra Stiles

Random thoughts:

I was very lucky growing up in Los Angeles: I had very good schools there and a supportive family. Then off to Yale where I had many great friends and teachers. The Harvard Graduate School of Education offered a degree program in counseling psychology for a short period and I was fortunate to be able to finish the program there. Some people talk about having a single influential mentor, but I had several.

I joined the Peace Corps to get a draft deferment, but living in Botswana turned out to be a life-changing event. I met my wife, Jane, there and we had two children and many good years together. In Botswana in 1970–71, there was this idea that you could put an ear to the ground to hear the heartbeat of the earth, which I tried. Mostly, I heard the voices of my own fears and this led me to psychology, I think.

I benefited from the forgiving spirit of so many people in Botswana. In the early ’70s, the times were harsh in southern Africa; Nelson Mandela was still in prison, for example. So many people I met there were unbelievably positive and accepting. Jane and I are not together, but we collaborate as grandparents with our three grandchildren, so I have benefited from her positive spirit too.

I am still working as a neuropsychologist, mostly with children. I really like the work and I like it more than what I would do if I retired. Late in my career, I started working part time with St. Ann’s Home and School in Methuen, Massachusetts. St. Ann’s is a residential treatment center and school for children and adolescents. The staff and teachers at St. Ann’s show so much care and respect for the residents there; I am deeply touched by it.

Dementia does not run in my family, but I think about it anyway. I decided to memorize poems as a way to keep my brain active! Let me say that there is no scientific basis for thinking that memorizing poems can prevent Alzheimer’s disease. But it has become a form of meditation as I jog in the mornings along the Charles River. Memorization is old-fashioned (I’m old-fashioned!) but can it deliver us into the mindset of another person?

My daughter, Emily, lives in Nairobi with her husband, Damon, and two children, Louise and Oscar. My son, Miles, lives in Silver Spring, Maryland, with his wife, Amy, and daughter, Kalinda. I am a very proud (and lucky) father, in-law, and grandfather. When I am with them, I feel so positive about all of these people coming after me.

When I was in Africa in the ’70s, there was a lot of talk about tribalism. We seem to be dealing with our own tribalism here and now. Many of the young people I work with seem to be saying, “enough,” and I feel hopeful again!