Three Little Maids! Titwillow!

This evening, to mark our return to the final five months at Seabury (and to take a serious break from studying), we're attending the Light Opera Works' production of The Mikado at Cahn Auditorium. It's hard to know when next we'll be in a place where we can walk just three blocks to such playful entertainment.

Here, where it's still quiet, we await the return of friends, and anticipate a new year of adventures.

Getting Dressed

This week has been a weird sort of return to childhood: I'm learning how to get dressed and learning how to set the table.

Getting dressed is proving to be a challenge, given that my clergy collar is new, with a very stiff opening at the back. Combined with my fingers (often numb due to circulatory problems) and not being able to see what I'm doing, it takes nearly 15 minutes to get my shirt and collar on! I think I need the velcro version. Any tips?

Just before my new clergy shirt arrived today, I received a phone call from the company from which I'd ordered. The salesperson called to let me know that, while billing my credit card, she'd mistakenly typed in $4,600.00, rather than $46.00. Heh heh. She was grateful that, instead of expressing annoyance and anger, I burst out laughing.

The Day Has Come

We head to Des Moines in a few hours for our ordination tomorrow. There's a Seabury gathering tonight for the surprising number of folks coming from Chicago. I'm counting on them to distract me from this crazy nervousness -- in case Trollope's Barchester Towers (which I'll read en route) doesn't do the trick.

Joy and blessings also to friends Ian, Debra, and Robert, who will be ordained tomorrow too.

Seen and Unseen

My eye exam today unexpectedly turned up signs of early-onset glaucoma; we'll know for sure following a high-tech eyeball and optic nerve scan right after Christmas. I experienced this news with some discouragement, as it suggests one more way in which I'm turning into my mother!

After the appointment, I stopped for some peppermint mocha therapy at Starbucks, and thought about how I take my vision for granted. I passed a shop where children can create their own bears. A sign in the shop read: "Anyone can now have happy childhood memories." Further down the string of shops, a sandwich booth advertised "desert crepes" (probably very dry!) and a boutique offered blue jeans that claimed to "make your Christmas complete."

While I didn't wish to see any of these things, I'm grateful that I still see them.

Dear Exhausted People of God,

Did you notice that yesterday, on the final day of the seminary's fall term, most everyone looked as though they couldn't keep their eyes open a minute longer?
Extreme tiredness seemed to rob even the newest students of that exhilaration that should come with completing the first term.

As for us, we packed up and drove safely home to Iowa today, where it's snowy and very quiet. Our big old house is drafty and missing much of its furniture, but friends left us a bowl of oranges and grapefruit, and a brilliant red poinsettia. We unpacked, put away groceries, and sat down to enjoy some reading....then promptly fell asleep!

Bright Spot of the Day

Today Kristin, charming young Grace's mom and all-around super seminarian, requested that she be assigned as my GOE Chaplain. Score! I'm delighted, and hoping that she won't mind making daily Peet's Coffee & Tea runs.

Surely there must be some ways to stay sane while anticipating the exams themselves. It's these weeks before that feel most trying. I'll accept any and all helpful tips, even simple ones such as "Breathe."