One week In!!!

Hello Dear and Faithful,

I am beginning this post with a few requested photos from my new home here in Princeton, NJ. The first is a picture of IVY. :) This is specifically for my father, who wondered if I'd seen any ivy...the answer is YES, in abundance!

Below is a photo of my classroom building. It has several steps, and it vaguely reminds me of buildings in Oxford. Oh, to be academic again...

Below is our chapel, in which we worship daily. I am loving this time to come together as a community. No, it isn't required as a grad student, but many of us go anyway. :)
(btw- the middle school boys on the steps are foreign to me) :)

This is my dorm hall, called Alex Hall. It has it's ups and downs- but mostly ups. It just so happens to be the oldest building on campus! (only sometimes is that evident) :)

And for anyone who adores cute baby pictures- this is my niece once again, looking adorable the last day I was with her this summer!

Ha, and for something a little random... this is my engagement ring, for those who haven't seen it. AJ chose our two birth stones, along with two colors of gold, to represent our lives coming together. It has a pretty great explanation, available upon request. :)

And to begin recounting my previous week at Princeton!

My first sentence should be one of assurance and gratefulness. I assure everyone that my time here has been wonderful, and I extend my gratefulness to everyone who has been in prayer. It is at times humbling to be a "beginner" again, but the support of everyone's prayers has been felt tremendously, I promise. Each day I wake up reminding myself how blessed I am to be in a community of learning, backed by my previous communities of love.

Classes have been intimidating and exhilerating at the same time. I furiously scribble my notes while trying to understand the string of elaborate vocabulary pouring from my professor's mouth. Then I whisper a word of my ignorance to my neighbor, gaining a quick laugh...and I come back to reality. It's true that I am starting over once again. I do have a background of general theological knowledge, but this is intense! And I love it.

Oh gosh, I crammed so much into one week of seminary, it's difficult to know what exactly I should share with you. I have been keeping in shape with our less-than-state of the art (but still adequate) workout room, I attended a yoga class (taught by my doctoral student preceptor), which was wonderful and centering. My neighbors and some friends I've met have been really great companions on this trip through our first semester learnings! And above all, I am reading, learning, taking a water break, then reading some more!

Dorm life is fine. Sharing a bathroom is less exciting than I recall from undergrad. :) I enjoy the convenience of being so close to everything on campus, but sometimes it can be distracting to have my computer (okay, and bed) :) so close, when I should be studying. I have been through a number of possibilities for work study, most of which haven't panned out. I have a few more pending, and will report on results later... as if I need more to consume my time!

The paths and parks around the area here are splendid, I wish I had more time to enjoy them! Yesterday I met up with a Red Cloud student who is attending Princeton University, and we had a wonderful time catching up and walking around downtown Princeton! She also is a knowledgeable source for all that is Princeton and PU...so I am lucky to have her around!

Today I resorted to doing my laundry in the coin operated machines in our 1815 basement. It was as one might expect. glorious. :)

Hmm, I suppose this is enough ramblings for one day. I feel as if I have so much more to share! one quick note- I am actually heading back to SD briefly next weekend for a friend's wedding! It seems as if I just got here and I'm returning, but I look forward to the short time I will have with friends and family! I'm not exactly looking forward to the cramming a week of work into 4 days, but it's all good! :) (as one fellow seminarian said today at lunch- "I'm here to preach the gospel of, "take it easy." Consequently, he doesn't study on Fri. Sat. or Sun.) :)

Until the next honest report from Princeton Seminary,

Emily

My First Week in NJ

Princeton Here I am!!!

I'm beginning this blog with a good visual image. This is precisely the room in which I shall be typing future blogs posts. Hence, this is my dorm room at Princeton Theological Seminary!

And for your viewing pleasure- my then 7 1/2 week old niece Alexis...a treasure of a girl, and I miss her dearly (read on to hear more...)

Hello Friends and Family...

I have begun another blog...mostly because I need this outlet, I've decided. New Jersey is too far away from the people I love, and too close to so much adventure. This blog ought to bridge the gap.

I have been feeling a whirlwind of emotions. Generally speaking, I love it here (as is the case with most places in which I find myself). Yet I love so much of what I left behind in South Dakota, I often cry. That's right. Miss Put Together has cried nearly every day since coming here. At times I simply allow a few tears to flow. Other moments I find myself consumed in grief.

You know what's odd... I've never actually felt this way before. Ready to cry at the drop of a hat while simultaneously enjoying myself so much- yet, feeling so disconnected from everything familiar. Well, that's not exactly true. I have felt this way- when I was in Oxford for the semester. This experience is a bit more permanent, however, and I have welcomed meeting the fabulous people I will be studying alongside the next three years.

So here's the catch. I love too many places, too many people, too much adventure. (Ha, please don't believe that middle statement. Never too many people). :)

And as of a few hours ago, my cell phone is no longer working. Great!

Before I say a bit more about my orientation to Princeton Theological Seminary, allow me to update you faithful followers on my personal life. Many of you know this, but this summer I embraced many new situations. My new niece is simply adorable, my new fiance and I are thrilled for next summer's wedding, and my new status as "student again" has been a bit intimidating.

I've spent the past five days mingling with other students here at PTS, getting to know the basics, and exploring the area of Princeton. My hardest task thus far has been dropping off my fiance AJ at the airport Wednesday morning (he drove out with me, visiting friends and family along the way). I believe the tears have mainly ensured due to this "new" situation. I am as far from AJ for as long of time as I will ever be, God willing.

I say God willing because already I've been in conversation with people who seem to have much more faith than I. At times, I simply interpret events in life for nothing more than "extremely difficult," while others around me embrace such events as milestones in their walk with God. I guess that's the #1 thing I've learned thus far. I have much to learn from my fellow students.

This is all for now, I suppose. Please be in prayer for me, if you will, concerning my mixed bag of emotions- and you can be sure I will keep you up to date on my life here at Princeton. I'm a bit overwhelmed, so I mustn't go into great detail at the moment. Wait for it... :)

I love you all, with a love which flows through me from the warmth of God's heart.

Emily