First Semester Reflection

Tomorrow afternoon I will get together with some of my peers and our mentor to talk about seminary life, work life, home life, and all the happenings inbetween. Between now and then I am suppose to reflect on my first semester in seminary and impart some gracious words of wisdom from my reflections. So far I have nothing. I feel as though the "happenings" in daily life do not allow for reflection or for time to think about the important things in life. Really it's a shame that I feel I don't have enough time to consider how to apply what I am learning on a daily (or weekly) basis.

The rule I have tried to live by during my first semester in seminary has been to manage a sustainable pace. What is a sustainable pace? First, I feel as though I have the appropriate amount of credit hours, which in turn provides me with just the right amount of homework each week. I don't think I would do very well with more work at this point. Second, I consider how things are at home. My family is one of the reasons I'm here and they are the most important people in my life. In light of the amount of school work, I have to ask myself is my family getting enough of my time? Third, do I and my wife have adequate time to establish friendships and develop relationships with those around us?

As I reflect on my first semester in seminary I would say that overall I have pretty well managed a sustainable pace in the first two areas of my life and that I definitely should make more time to develop friendships. As a new year quickly approaches, I should make a purposeful resolution to see this through.

Extreme Ironing...not Irony!!

As some of you know...I am pretty good at ironing. I have been ironing my own clothes for 10+ years. In fact, I do all the ironing at my house--I iron my clothes, my wife's clothes, and my kid's clothes. I'm not ashamed to admit that I rather like to iron. It's something unique (or quirky...or weird if you will) about me.

I have found the perfect club to join! The Extreme Ironing Club!! Sounds exciting doesn't it? I think I would fit right in. Here's a picture of me ironing at the bottom of the Gulf.

(Just kidding! It's not me!)