Fields of Heaven

A week passed before Adina and I met again. For me, it was a hectic week because I spent quite a bit of time closing down all my commitments at Testit. I wanted to exit nicely and not leave them with unfinished business. At the same time, I started writing my research proposal. Both tasks were not easy and required a lot of energy. Every day I sat writing from early in the morning until the wee hours of the night. Yael tried not to disturb me, but I noticed signs of distress on her face. She had gotten used to our former routine.

"Don't worry," I told her one day, "this is a transitional period that will pass. I'm just busy with both worlds now, closing one and opening another, and it's taking energy out of me."

"I hope so," she said, doubt in her voice. She knew that when I immerse myself in something, I tend to lose my limits.

"You have to take care of yourself, Jonathan. It's not long since the accident and you're completely immersed in work. Sitting for hours is also an effort."

"I promise. It's a transition period of just a few weeks, and then we'll get back to a sane pace."

"Do what's right for you. I just worry and want us to keep our lives together. I'm good with our normal pace and I don't want to see it spoiled." She looked at me pleadingly and when she saw my distress she added, "I'll help, don't worry. I will mark the boundaries for you, and you, on your part, will try to keep them."

"Promise."

At the appointed hour, I knocked on the door of Adina's room with the research proposal.

"Come on, sit down," she called out invitingly, so different from her initial reaction, "did you make a proposal?"

I took the document out of my bag and gave it to her.

Adina skimmed the pages and lingered here and there on certain sections, especially the financial part. In the proposal, I asked for a budget of about two million dollars for the first year, and I assumed that within a year we would be able to show preliminary results and build on them in building the budget for the next year.

When she finished reading, Adina looked up and stared at me. "I thought a little about your proposal and even consulted with friends from the physics department," she said.

I blinked. She was running ahead faster than I had imagined. On the other hand, why am I surprised? It's her way.

"It won't be easy," she told me, looking me straight in the eye.

I was silent.

"There were a lot of question marks, even before I raised the subject of research. Simply because you've been out of academia for so long."

"Question marks?" I wondered.

"How much do you remember physics? What have you been doing since you did your doctorate? Do you need refresher courses? Are you also able to teach physics or will you only enter as a researcher? Those are just some of the questions."

"And they didn't ask what the research was about?" I wondered.

"They asked, but I didn't elaborate. I just said it had to do with neuroscience. I thought we would feed them in small spoons. Neuroscience is a hot field, and engaging in it can pave the way. Besides, I'm not sure I can correctly represent your direction. You've been researching the subject for quite some time, and I've only been exposed to it recently."

"What's the bottom line?" I wondered.

"We agreed that you would start working as a postdoc and I would take joint responsibility for the research together with Alon, Head of Neuroscience. That is, if we can convince him."