So it's been quite awhile since I wrote, hasn't it? Well, such is life middler year, I've been busier than I have been in awhile.
The first piece of news since my last post is that I am recommended to be endorsed for candidacy! My endorsement interview went really well, and just as soon as the candidacy committee makes it official in December I will be done with the next step toward being a pastor. It was really wonderful to have Cheryl, my candidacy contact up here for the day of my endorsement, and I was able to how her around my neighborhood a bit around the interview. Which means we went for Jeni's ice cream.
The day after my endorsement interview I gave George to petsmart for the week and left for Oklahoma. It was wonderful to truly take that time off, and on one of the days that Silas was at work and I was just hanging around, I took a three hour nap. We spent a day at the zoo and went kayaking, and we celebrated our third year anniversary. It was really fantastic to be together on our anniversary - we weren't last year - and to spend some quality time together. Times like that make the long-distance go easier. Eventually, I had to head back to Ohio, though.
I got back late on a Monday night, and somehow that meant my entire week basically slammed me in the face. I made it through though, and then it was time for Reformation week! I love Reformation week and All Saints, and we pulled out the stops here at Trinity. We had red hanging all over the place, and I got to sing the Lutheran fight song a couple of times. Then this All Saints week has been really powerful for me in worship, because I have a lot of people I am remembering this year. Today in worship, we had a chance to light a candle around a cross, and I was able to sit and pray and remember those I love who are with God now. When I'm busy planning and executing worship, it is nice to find those times to truly be present in the worship itself.
Aside from worship, I have been busy in my classes. We've covered Chrsitology in Systematics and moved well into the Holy Spirit and the Church. I can hardly believe how fast it's going. In my Lutheran Confessions class, I just wrote a Reformation day sermon, a week after Reformation day. Hopefully I can use it, or part of it in the future. And in my preaching class, I have given two sermons and have three still to write. They're going well, and as difficult as it can be to listen to myself and annotate my own sermons, it's teaching me a lot about how I preach and how I talk. For instance, I discovered I use my hands a lot when I talk! In a couple of weeks I will be preaching the second sermon I wrote for class at All Saints, which both exciting and terrifying.
Life continues to be pretty much school and work at All Saints, and I do love it, but I wouldn't want to do this forever. It kind of feels like, between school, being sacristan, and working at All Saints, that I am working a job and a half. I've been really tired a lot of this semester, which is not terribly different from the past two years, but it's getting more noticeable and more problematic. I am finally going to go see a psychiatrist to see if adjusting my antidepressants will help with my energy. I'm sure my professors would enjoy me not struggling to stay awake in most of my classes. One thing I am continuing to learn is how to care for myself, as my endorsement interview reminded me. I'll keep practicing, though.
Right now, I have the seminary cold that has been going around for a couple of weeks, but thankfully I have no classes or meetings tomorrow, so I will be able to spend the whole day in bed getting better. I'm sure George will be glad too, as several of my days this week have been extra long, meaning he has not had his required pets. I can't believe how close Thanksgiving and Christmas are getting, but I am looking forward to being able to spend the holidays back home, and to see my family and Silas again.
I'll try to write more frequently, but I can't promise anything - this has been on my to-do list all week! I hope everyone reading this is well.
