The Deed is Done...

And that Deed is.... My Final Paper!!!!

Before more discussion...here are a few photos from our celebration of Joe's birthday party!

Joe stuffed three mini cakes into his mouth....gross!

Joe showing his excitement about about the idea of stuffing three cakes into his mouth.

The super-card we made for Joe...I counted how many friends were in the dorm room...it was a dozen! What a fabulous group!

I just submitted my final assignment for the January course, which means (as tired as I am), that I have an entire week to relax before 2nd semester actually begins!


My friends from HS are actually visiting for the week, so I will have a break from homework, but still an active break! I have a few things to share with you, my blog friends, but I'm also not up for typing much...since I have typed more in the past three weeks than was required for all of 1st semester! Seriously!

So, a few highlights. 1- my grade for OT changed from a B to a B+ because they caught some final totalling error...woohoo! 2- I found out some incredibly exciting news recently- my fiance AJ is able to stay in a house nearby campus for free in Princeton...which means he's moving in a few weeks! 3- I met some awesome people who have asked us to use their furniture while they are away in China for two years....perfect timing for AJ & I in our first two years of marriage! 4-My friends here at the seminary are delightful and I love them so much! (pictures of us at Joe's party reveal their awesomeness!) 5- Did I mention that I am finished with my short-term class??? :)


Okay, so much more likely happened, but my brain is shot- and my friend Nealy is here already, so I shall sign off and post some pictures from Joe's party!


Love you all and hope you are finding joy in life, amidst the uncertainty of natural disasters....

Em

Internal Tension

It's mid January, and in the midst of my busiest week here at Princeton thus far, a tragedy of enormous proportion occurred in Haiti.

I feel as if moments such as this life-shattering earthquake must cause us all to re-evaluate the purpose of our lives, and even though I know I am not well-equipped to be of aid at this desperate time in Haiti... a part of me wonders if I say that because I do not want to disrupt my life. Honestly, I would guess that we all deal with an internal tension regarding our desire to help and our inability to concieve of how our skill sets might be put to use.

I cannot deny that large machinery and medical aid seem the most important tools for saving lives at this point. However, I also possess skills of a relational nature...and in the coming months, perhaps those would be more useful? Gosh, it really tears me apart, since all the prayer in the world is only floating in the winds if people aren't prepared to answer those prayers on the ground...and yet as a theologian I understand that God can work miracles, that God often chooses to work miracles through those willing to help, and that in the midst of chaos, God' peace can reign. I know these truths, yet I cannot simply disregard the immense physical suffering by ascribing a spiritual quality to the events. What if the earthquake was in a coastal area of the US? My hope is I would feel no more or less desire to help regardless of the geographical location of suffering people.

I could ponder this internal tension for hours, yet I realize that with no immediate plan for how to help, I must continue with my life for the sake of the people I am around today who need a touch of comfort, a word of encouragement, or a smile of understanding. These past two weeks have been a blur...I continued recovering from my cold last week, while enjoying a few extra hours of rest...and this past Monday I hit the ground running by writing and more writing, reading and more reading. Whew, I can finally breathe this weekend, and my class requirements are over 1/2 done!

A bit about youth ministry- I am writing a paper regarding my own hermeneutic of ministry (based on prior experience) and what I hope for in my future ministry. It has been an interesting process, as I enjoy reflecting on my experiences quite a bit. I have realized that as much as my youth group moments helped form my spiritual devotion, my consistent involvement within the church family as a whole likely had an even greater and long-lasting effect upon my faith formation. Such is the basis for my envisioned model of intergenerational youth ministry.

I received my grades for last semester's classes, and I must say, I was quite pleased. I received one A, two A-, and a B! Total: 3.5 GPA for my first semester! This makes me happy. :)

On another note, upon returning to school after Xmas, I have been overwhelmed with realizing my many blessings here...great friends, talented faculty, faithful people, warmer weather, convenient accommodations, and technology to keep me connected with friends such as you! :)

My fiance AJ began his Master's Program simultaneously with my first week back to school, and it has been interesting to see how our time for talking is whittled away when we are both studying/ in class. However, less than 5 months and we shall be married...without this crazy long-distance business to deal with. Honestly, my busyness here is helpful to create distraction from missing AJ- primarily because I did not previously realize how much I could possibly miss him!

Next week I have my final few assignments due, a class presentation, and finishing my final paper! This will all be done on Friday, in time for my two dear HS friends to come visit during my week break! I will surely have pictures and stories to share from our time together.

One random detail before I wrap up this long-time-in-coming post. During the writing process for my paper in class, I soon realized that my blog-writing style is not exactly helpful for an academic paper. In my revising stage, I think I reworded at least five sentences where I used parenthesis (because, who of course doesn't love the random explanations inside parenthesis? Oh, professors). :)

Okay, here's to feeling torn about my blessings here in Princeton- and the atrocities of Haiti. May our God who is found when sought be found in the midst of the struggles in Haiti- and may our redeemer Jesus Christ be given arms and legs by people who provide comfort to those who are suffering.

All my love, in the midst of difficult questions,

Emily

Back in Action- 2010!

Wow! I am back in action after a long blogging hiatus!

Thanks for tuning in again to my wonderfully busy world of seeking God at Princeton. See- I have actually been away from Princeton for awhile- yet I still have so many updates to share, it's hard to know where to begin.

As with most posts, I shall begin chronologically! The week of finals was grueling. Not any more grueling than one might expect a masters degree study to entail...however, since it was my first semester, I'm not sure I had fully solidified my expectations of how intense the exams would be. I studied my little brain to exhaustion (seriously, like the feeling after taking a 4 hour standardized test? Yep. Three days in a row). By the time Friday came, my brain wasn't exactly prepared for the OT exam...so let's just say I did less than excellent on that one! But I shall report (my currently unknown) grades sooner than later- perhaps even next week! :) (I feel as if I am a kid writing home to her parents to check on my grades- as if I have some child-like accountability to my blogging parental audience) :)

So, exhausted from my super-mode thinking, I headed to the airport on Friday- as one of the lucky few who got out before the snow storm hit hard! However, my flights weren't exactly a piece of cake. See, I got to Newark International, and they told me the flight to Chicago was delayed and I wouldn't make my connection. This is the same dismal story they told me time and again, which is why I contacted a friend in Chicago to stay with her, since the next flight they booked me on didn't leave until Saturday morning. Ha! All I wanted to do is be home in SD- more badly than I had anticipated! With all the grace of God, my flight was delayed leaving from Chicago- which meant I was able to make it to Sioux Falls by around 1am Sat. morning to fall into the arms of AJ! In enough time to make my Sat. a.m. haircut, my cousins wedding, and my way to Minneapolis the next night for my flight on Sunday morning to Tampa. Whew, this begins another long story of travel chaos... (btw- the haircut was great, my family is awesome, and my cousin's wedding was beautiful!)

So I reach my friend Emily's place (of great hospitality) late Saturday night, and AJ & I fly out 7am Sunday. So, we didn't plan well in the morning to get to the airport on time- only to realize we had enormous lines to endure...so long that we would never make our flight on time. Again, a long series of God-events, and we ran down the gangway to make the plane to Tampa! Seriously- it was so close- two minutes later (or one less God-event) and we would have been flying ourselves to Caymen to reach the first cruise port! The joy does not end there...after we get on the plane, we realize our seats have been occupied by a family of four...which left us floundering a few minutes before an attendant ushered us to two first class seats! That's right- flying in style, knowing we were the luckiest travelers in that plane! AND although our luggage did not make the first plane, we eventually were able to receive our luggage on the ship before departing- which means everything worked out perfectly- and our travel mishaps suddenly turned to good fortune. First class- door-side luggage transport.... what more could we ask? :)

Okay, at this point I will direct you to a series of pictures I have posted online (facebook) which have captains that will explain our cruise better than I could in a few paragraphs....so check them out! http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2021889&id=110800880&l=506eadfe7d

After I returned from the cruise, I had a few crazy days of wedding planning, during which my mother and I knocked out several major "to dos" which felt really nice. We are about set for the wedding! Or as set as you can be 5 months out! :) Then we had our annual new year's eve party, which was great- seeing friends and family for a short time before heading back here for school. Also, our family waited to celebrate Xmas until I came back, which was splendid- and although I have been sick this whole time since Xmas day- the trip back home was wonderful!

Now, a short moment about my new class! I am in a Paradigms of Youth Ministry class, which is more accurately- a philosophy of living/eating/ministry and ways to discern the best way. :) like that title? I just made it up now. Yeah, I am considering a career in writing, thanks for asking. :)

I'm actually really glad to be back to a routine here, to see familiar faces, and to be active again in the gym! However, it was quite hard to leave SD behind, especially my adorable fiance AJ with whom I am madly in love. I suppose it's a good thing that it continues to become harder and harder to say goodbye, but that doesn't make the goodbyes pleasurable to say the least! Now, how to make 5 months feel like a short amount of time...

Okay, this is plenty long, I realize, but the typing bug hit me today, and that's when this blog is at its best! I would like to mention that I actually caught up on all the bloggers on my dashboard before typing my own (admirable perhaps?) :) and so if you'd like to send your URL, I'd love to be included in your blog, if you happen to be reading this! :)

To my friends who desire a weekly update, I apologize for the last month- and I will have you know that my new year's resolution involves more routine- which could include more blogs?? we shall see!

Peace to all in this festive year of 2010! Sending my love, but not my germs,

Emily