A Few Weeks In

Lately, I have been struggling to rejuvenate the skills necessary to be a good manager of time and a proactive student. These first few weeks of school have been a relearning time for me. After a few years out of academia, I have had to shake off my high school, and often undergraduate, mentality that the assignment is the ultimate point of class. In other words, this time around has been more than just picking up a book and reading it for how I'm "supposed"to read it. This does not mean, of course, that such skills aren't necessary. While the exercises in class have a purpose, the goal is not to create something that just pleases the teacher. It's a nice perk, but there has to be something in the work that I can make my own. Something in the exercise reveals, and often changes, who I am in relation to the world.
This awareness goes back to the idea we had in class about the lifelong education. Instead of using the reflective writings as a way to pad our journal, they have been incorporated into dialogue between students in peer groups. Keeping a journal has helped me document my thoughts and reflect on them as I develop my opinions. So, when my wife and I talk about the topics raised at school, we are not regurgitating facts. Our experiences both within the classroom and without continue to add to our growth as a family.
How does school work and the social atmosphere that MC provides add to your growth? I can't answer this for you. However, it seems through many of the drafts that I've received that you are all wrestling with this issue of a Christian education in a proactive way. Many have built off the prewriting exercises that seemed just busy work, and many are asking questions that are at a more personal level than academia usually requires.

The In Betweener

Around this time at night, my wife and I are able to unwind. Our son, Linus, is asleep, and we are able to focus our energies on relaxing. Sometimes we watch a movie. Usually, however, I 'have' to read for class before I can treat myself to some fun reading. Sometimes a little Cormac McCarthy helps me unwind from those hectic scholarly journals and abstracts. At other times my mind is soothed by the easy prose and English humour of the famous P.D. Wodehouse duo, Bertie Wooster and his gentleman's gentleman, Jeeves. Ever wonder where 'Ask Jeeves' comes from? Now you know. My wife uses this time to paint with a talent that I simultaneously envy and appreciate.
"What a nice, little domestic life you have, Mr. Howell," some might say. It is true, God has blessed me with a wonderfully supportive and loving wife, a beautiful and healthy young son, and a penchant for collecting good books from generous and well read friends. However, this time has to be orchaestrated for relaxation and is never guarenteed.
"You mean you have to work on finding down time? Isn't that what weekends are for?" Well, those aren't a given either. An eight month old provides lots of excitement: full diapers, teething, crying, full diapers, crawling, growth spurts, falling, more full diapers. A happy household provides lots of excitement as well: dishes, bills, laundry, bills,... you get the point. These are distractions and complications, right? Nope. Just excuses for being lazy? Well... maybe.
These are all parts of the blessing. Just because God has given me the ability to marry, to procreate, to reap and sow does not mean that they are without tribulations. Just because God has given me a wife does not mean that our marriage is without trials. Just because God has given me a son does not mean that my manhood is achieved. God has given me a brain to explore this world full of his blessings and faith to accept Chirst's truth and grace over my sinful arrogance and sloth.
I do not claim access to your unique background, exciting and/or troubling faith issues, or even the experiences of being a freshman again, but I can sympathize where you are at as students. My calling to teach is blessed with all sorts of first experiences; juggling time between McCarthy and Wodehouse, eating, my wife's painting, my son's teething, sleeping, blogging, and 'having' to read all those texts for classes have caused me to appreciate their importance in my life as opposed to running through the motions. Learning to be a teacher is more than just forced fulfillment of structured academics. Rather, I am encouraged and challenged to be proactive about exploring my own educational path.