The End of a Week.

It's strange to me that this week is finally at a close. It has seemed so long... in part because of all the Orienting I have done, but largely due to all the information I have had to absorb.

I have returned from the Retreat we had as STU students and Faculty. We had a lovely stay in a place called Shekinah. It was a good bonding experience, mainly because it was for the whole of us - not just first-years, but everyone. There are a lot of us, first-years that is, and it's nice to watch us develop as a group. We also got to spend time with the other students and faculty, and I appreciate that because I can speak my questions and reservations.

I think this week has affirmed this path in a lot of ways, but also brings up many questions and fears. There is a lot of this that is so unlike simply going away to University. There are more people/groups that I am accountable to, and more things that I have to do outside of class time and school in general.

One of those things currently weighing on my mind is CPE (Clinical Pastoral Education). It is a course I must complete before I can go on internship - and it is a course that is very intensive. It is a full-time commitment over the summer that is effectively full-time work which you are paying to do. I have come to the conclusion that because it is an experience I pay for, and likely have to move for, I will have to rely on the charity of someone else to house and feed me. Hopefully there are people out there willing to do that.

Time is another things that weighs on my mind as well. Time-management is going to either be very strict or a very important lesson. Too much of this year is dependent on my ability to manage my time effectively. My schedule is filling up quickly, and I will have to watch myself more carefully.

I have discovered that there is another course that I will be taking this semester, which brings the number to 6 courses. I also have a Chapel Group wherein we, as a group, assume the duties and roles of leading Chapel for a week. There is a rotation of groups, but it looks like quite a bit of work. Another thing that I need to work on is a biblical language. I have the option to wait until the summer to take the class, or I can work with a computer tutorial and "test out". I think I am going to attempt the tutorial, but have yet to decide if I want to test out or not.

This month is also burdened with the Accreditation Board visiting. These people are observing the school and determining if it is still able to be accredited - which means that my degree is valid in an academic standing. Pressure for the school, to be sure, but that in turn puts pressure on the Faculty and the students as well, to a perhaps minor degree.

I have learned quite a bit only in talking to other students, and I am both excited and daunted by the week to come. The possibilities for the role I am assuming in being here are great, but I am also stuck in a lot of fundamental ways. I really admire the more senior students in their eagerness to be "done", but am grateful in their support of the first-years as well.

As an aside to my commitments I would have to note that I am now also the Chair of the Events committee for the LTSSU. Events really boils down to two functions that need to be planned: Christmas Party and Graduation Party. I have promised the seniors on the committee that they will not have to plan their own Grad party. It should be interesting given that they are what makes up the rest of the committee itself. I will be hunting down help from other people as I firmly believe that a Chair's role is to delegate not do all the work themselves.

Also noteworthy: I will be having dinner with the Sask CTEL next week, and I am looking forward to meeting them all. I won't be meeting with them in an official capacity until March - but it will be nice to see all of them.

I can point to two things that I learned this week that I found interesting. According to my Anglican peers: Marriage is a Sacrament. Interesting to note. The second thing I learned is going to take more ruminations on my part. An Ordained Lutheran must be a Parish call for 3 years before they can move on to other settings or calls. I spoke with some students at a good length about what that means in terms of Chaplaincy and Synodical/National Offices. My conclusion at the end of the conversation still holds to the belief that it would make more sense to assess the candidates strengths before saying only Parish - and apparently there is precedent for exceptions - but I think it would be more supportive to support a person in their strengths of ministry, especially if they are clearly better suited to a different role other than Parish pastor. More on this later perhaps.

This week has been uplifting and an act of walking more faithfully. I hadn't really planned to be here, but... Here, I am. And that is a gift that I look forward to unwrapping.