Today was my first "real" rainy day here on the West coast. I have been able to enjoy an incredibly fall with gorgeous weather, but after Thanksgiving the sunshine came to an end. Clouds have been rolling in and today I actually got to use the lovely umbrella I was given for my birthday. At this moment I'm sitting at my desk listening to the rain falling outside. It's black out, so I can see nothing, but the world definitely sounds alive.
This has been a wonderful week. I spent three days involved with some community organizations which gave me a chance to not only think about curriculum and how I could teach certain topics, but also allowed me to get to know other people in my module. I even got to get a little crazy with them (there may or may not be video footage out there of me sailing a tugboat). And then today I was able to actually be in my practicum school observing some high school English classes taught by my SA (School Advisor--he's the guy who gets to help me become what I hope will be a fantastic teacher). He actually reminds me a lot of my oldest brother who is also a teacher, so I think it will work well being his student teacher.
Tonight didn't quite work out the way it was supposed to, but I am rolling with the punches. See, I'm a small town driver, or a highway driver. I'm not a city driver (or at least I have to drive a route a few times to really feel comfortable with it). The reason I say this is because tonight I was supposed to head into the city to get together with people from my module. We were all going to relax, recap our week, and just enjoy being together. I was pretty gung-ho about this.
And then I kind of got lost.
Don't worry, this tends to happen to me. I have become quite the expert at back-tracking :)
But the result is that I am now back at home. On a Friday night.
Sometimes I'm convinced I must truly be the most pathetic university student out there. I go to bed early, get up early... I feel guilty leaving the house at eight in the morning because my housemates are all still in bed. Someone in my module pointed out that I seem to be living as if in Charming's time zone. Maybe there is some merit in that thought. Or maybe I am just an old soul :)
This morning I went for a run in the rain. It was as though overnight the world became fully immersed in fall. The trees were a little more bare, the ground a little more clothed, and a slight mist hung about my surroundings. Truly, it was breathtaking.
I have been working my way (very slowly I'm ashamed to say), through G.K. Chesterton's The Everlasting Man. There was one point I read today that I originally wanted to share with you all, but as I was slowly flipping through the book I came across a quotation I had underlined sometime over the summer.
Chesterton said, "Behind all these things is the fact that beauty and terror are very real things and related to a real spiritual world; and to touch them at all, even in doubt or fancy, is to stir the deep things of the soul."
As I ran this morning my soul was stirred. To be honest, my route felt like something from a dream. Only in my most vivid imaginings do I actually see branches adorned with red, or leaves the size of my face lying upon the ground. Only in my imagination does mist rest upon pools of water and rain drops kiss my face as I run, unafraid of my early morning appearance.
This morning I believe God was telling me He loves me. And after a week of trying to be more aware of Him, I kind of needed that.
Now to see what tomorrow's rainy run will hold ;)
This is my story.
This has been a wonderful week. I spent three days involved with some community organizations which gave me a chance to not only think about curriculum and how I could teach certain topics, but also allowed me to get to know other people in my module. I even got to get a little crazy with them (there may or may not be video footage out there of me sailing a tugboat). And then today I was able to actually be in my practicum school observing some high school English classes taught by my SA (School Advisor--he's the guy who gets to help me become what I hope will be a fantastic teacher). He actually reminds me a lot of my oldest brother who is also a teacher, so I think it will work well being his student teacher.
Tonight didn't quite work out the way it was supposed to, but I am rolling with the punches. See, I'm a small town driver, or a highway driver. I'm not a city driver (or at least I have to drive a route a few times to really feel comfortable with it). The reason I say this is because tonight I was supposed to head into the city to get together with people from my module. We were all going to relax, recap our week, and just enjoy being together. I was pretty gung-ho about this.
And then I kind of got lost.
Don't worry, this tends to happen to me. I have become quite the expert at back-tracking :)
But the result is that I am now back at home. On a Friday night.
Sometimes I'm convinced I must truly be the most pathetic university student out there. I go to bed early, get up early... I feel guilty leaving the house at eight in the morning because my housemates are all still in bed. Someone in my module pointed out that I seem to be living as if in Charming's time zone. Maybe there is some merit in that thought. Or maybe I am just an old soul :)
This morning I went for a run in the rain. It was as though overnight the world became fully immersed in fall. The trees were a little more bare, the ground a little more clothed, and a slight mist hung about my surroundings. Truly, it was breathtaking.
I have been working my way (very slowly I'm ashamed to say), through G.K. Chesterton's The Everlasting Man. There was one point I read today that I originally wanted to share with you all, but as I was slowly flipping through the book I came across a quotation I had underlined sometime over the summer.
Chesterton said, "Behind all these things is the fact that beauty and terror are very real things and related to a real spiritual world; and to touch them at all, even in doubt or fancy, is to stir the deep things of the soul."
As I ran this morning my soul was stirred. To be honest, my route felt like something from a dream. Only in my most vivid imaginings do I actually see branches adorned with red, or leaves the size of my face lying upon the ground. Only in my imagination does mist rest upon pools of water and rain drops kiss my face as I run, unafraid of my early morning appearance.
This morning I believe God was telling me He loves me. And after a week of trying to be more aware of Him, I kind of needed that.
Now to see what tomorrow's rainy run will hold ;)
This is my story.
Wow, that Chesterton quote is incredible. I have to put that one on my list to read. Thanks for sharing that, and your tale of woe... sometimes it's nice to read something that doesn't have the answer, but points to a God whose love is.
ReplyDeleteI was pretty dumbfounded when I came across the quote and realized I hadn't shared it. It so aptly describes what I feel when in the presence of beauty (and terror). Glad you could use it in your post this week :)
Delete" I feel guilty leaving the house at eight in the morning because my housemates are all still in bed"
ReplyDelete- that's a terrible reason to feel guilty! Really.
Going to bed early and getting up early is good because you make most of the day. It's so easy to waste time at night, and lying lazily in bed in the morning.
Which part of America are you in, if you don't mind me asking (not that i probably know it, although do know Ohio and Washington State a bit).
Ed (UK)
Thanks! And I am actually in Canada.
DeleteApologies for assuming you were in America and not Canada ..
ReplyDeleteEd (UK)