Weekly post

April 3, 2006

Dear friends,
Sorry that there was no post for March 27. The blog site wouldn't let me in.
Meanwhile, all sorts of fun news.
Two term papers down, three to go. Then finals.
My online course transfer requests are up in the air because they are all pass/fail -- as are most seminaries. WFU is an exception in issuing letter grades. I am going to be really distressed if they end up not taking them!

On Wednesday, I was a passenger in a car that another car hit head-on. No one was seriously injured, but I was banged up. Stiffness in neck and ribcage, a line of bruises down my right side, a couple of good shin bruises. However, that was on Wednesday. The stiffness has eased considerably, and the bruises are going through their technicolor exit.

It's time to sign up for fall courses. I believe I will be taking Greek I, Theology I, Intro to Spiritual Life, Pastoral Care, and Art of Ministry II. All required courses, but if I'm lucky I'll draw the theology professor who has a better reputation rather than the newer instructor, whose approach is scattershot. I'm too linear for that.

Keep in touch.
Grace and peace,
Beth

Weekly post

March 13, 2006
Dear friends,
I am still processing everything that went on in New York, so it might be a little while before I post anything on that.
However ... on Friday I went for my CPE interview. CPE is Clinical Pastoral Education and is almost always done at a hospital, combining class time in the hospital with practical chaplaincy work under supervision. I had hoped to do it during the summer, where it is full time for 10 weeks, rather than fit it in to a school year with everything else going on.
I had my interview on Friday afternoon (March 3) and was told that letters would be mailed out by the end of March letting us know. The next day, I received a letter, dated March 3, accepting me into the program. So that was interesting. I have some idea of what to expect, but will let you know more as it unfolds.
Meanwhile, because spring break was taken up with the New York mission trip, I had not a minute to do any homework or studying. It's the paradox of the school. Professors pile on midterms and homework and papers before spring break, saying that we will have that time to work on them. However, as they know, about 1/3 of the students go on mission trips during spring break! So now that I'm back, I'm dreading the infamous Ethics midterm and trying to make time to write several papers. Still, a lot of us are in the same boat.
When confronted with a lot of stuff that has to get done, I tend to make a list and try to proceed methodically, so that's what I hope to do between classes today... proceed methodically and do what I can.
Tomorrow: Bill Moyers speaks in chapel. Woohoo!!
Grace and peace,
Beth