This quarter has been exceedingly busy. Our professors have not been shy in giving us homework, and as it increases in amount and intensity it is easy to get overwhelmed. I think that in the past four weeks I have broken my own record for how many times I finished my homework a few minutes before class. On Mondays, I meet with our business group for three hours–it is going really well. We have a team of two media students, Daniel & I, and an advisor that has taken particular interest in our business. By the end of the quarter we will have a business plan and presentation as well as a promotional video and a website. Tuesday is full, with six hours of class: three hours on risk management (a general business class), and three hours in our global cultures class. Global cultures is pretty interesting, because we are striving to understand people from other cultures by reading their writings and news and watching films. The past two weeks we have even been corresponding with English students from China! On Wednesday afternoons I have a class on the philosophy of nature, which goes through how we understand the world around us; it is based on Aristotle and St. Thomas Aquinas’ writings, and is both interesting and difficult. On Thursdays I have my last class, which is on Public Relations. I am enjoying this class as well, as but it is also difficult and work intensive. By the end of the quarter I will have a press kit, portfolio, and another presentation for our business.
Our school is really experiencing growing pains right now. Our student body went from about 80 students to 120 students this fall. There is another class of freshmen, as well as the start of a MBA program and a Masters in Biblical Theology program. The rearranged class times have made it more difficult to both go to Mass and eat between classes, but we are (very) slowly adjusting. The school halls are always busy, and it is often hard to find quiet places to work in on campus anymore…hopefully it will get a little better after the seniors graduate in December. Student activities are about the same as usual. About the only difference is that I have been spending more time in the common rooms again, trying to get to know some of the freshmen.
At the beginning of the quarter, I moved apartments. I went from a 3-bedroom apartment with 7 girls into a 2-bedroom apartment with 4 girls. It is really nice–I have enough room in the refrigerator and freezer to go grocery shopping, I can do laundry when I need to, and it is almost always quiet enough to study up here! I am thoroughly enjoying it, and hoping that I don’t have to move in January after the seniors are gone. If I can stay, I will likely not move again until I graduate in September.
A little while ago, my theology professor asked if I would be willing to help catechize a blind lady (Desiree) who is in the RCIA program with our local parish. His wife has been working with her before, but is having a baby very soon and will need someone to take over. This past week was the first time that I actually talked, and it went well. Desiree is a sweet lady, and I think it will be a good experience for both of us.
A Joy to Love 