Winter Quarter 2007

I can not believe how long it's been since I posted to this blog. A whole quarter went by with nothing from me -- and it wasn't that bad a quarter. Except, of course, for reading week when I got the respitory flu and thought death was a good idea. That's what I get for not being innoculated for the first time in 20 years. Health service was good, though. I loved Dr. Connolly. She brought me in to look at my x-ray to deliver the bad news that my heart didn't look that good. I told her it was no surprise to me. Doctors were watching me and it once a year. When I came back for my follow-up visit, she was visibly relieved to see that I was doing better. She told me that she had thought I was having a stroke when she first saw me. I was in such a fog that day. Fever and couldn't stay awake. I do remember having me do the tests they always give people they think may be having a stroke. Well, this week I'm finally getting better. I have more energy but I'm still coughing. Altogether better though.

My work is done for the quarter. Not sure what will happen. I find I'm caring less about grades. That would really be a good thing. It was a great quarter. Gospel Mission got off to a rocky start but quickly got better and better and we began to talk about race, gender, sexual orientation, class, etc. It was an excellent class and continues to make me question my prejudices, long-held beliefs, and Weltanschauung.

Spirituality for Ministry was a godsend. Because there was a bit less work than most classes and because we will not receive a letter grade and because we were focused on our own spiritual lives, it was a nurturing, supportive class. Got a lot out of it. Liturgy II was terrific. Learned so much about Baptism, Eucharist, the Church Year, and Public Prayer. Really enjoyed the early Church readings. AKMA's Early Church History class enabled me to really understand the context of those readings. It was great. The course also truly informed the way I sang and read Eucharistic Prayer A for Use of the Voice. Studying the Eucharist really gave me an entirely new feeling about Prayer A. Elizabeth pointed out to me that my hands were in the orans position as I sang it. At first, I didn't notice. When I did I left them there because it felt so right. And this from someone who never used to be very comfortable about using her body to pray. I'm feeling more like a priest as time goes on. Little by little, I'm transforming.

Old Testament was an excellent course. Brook Lester really knows his stuff and is a terrific teacher. Delightful as a lecturer -- both entertaining and informative. For a little while the first quarter I thought I actually could study OT in depth. Don't think that any more. In fact, I'm having second thoughts about taking Hebrew. More Spanish might make more sense.

It was a wild ride, but I learned a lot and didn't go absolutely crazy. One more quarter and then CPE.