Some Good News to Share!

I am truly thrilled to share some very exciting news with you. As of Wednesday afternoon I accepted a position as an Assistant Professor in my field at By the Bay Seminary. (Trying to announce this exciting news while not revealing exact details!) :)

This has developed quite quickly over the past month and a half or so. And although we all thought we would be heading back home this summer, we are really very, very happy.

I have been on a long journey since I started seminary in the fall of 2000. I have tried to follow a sense of where I was being led, but it honestly never made any practical sense. My denomination historically has downplayed the importance of studying worship on the seminary level (though we've certainly emphasized preaching!) And it was truly a leap of faith to go ahead with my oddball degree in Liturgical Studies, despite every sign that it would only leave me unemployed at the end of all these difficult years.

Now I am in awe of how quickly this position came about. And that my destination has finally become clear. I am so thankful.

A really wonderful benefit of these past couple days has been getting to share this news with loved ones who have been such an important part of my journey all these years. As notes have poured back, I've been more aware than ever of how many mentors I've had along the way. What a joy to hear back from quite a few people who feel at least in part responsible for this success--and rightly so! I'm more aware than ever of the reality that I did not accomplish any of this alone, but only together with family, friends, teachers, spiritual guides, and loved ones.

Today D and I "celebrated" by taking the day off from work and overhauling our apartment! After years of being prejudiced against renting storage space (it's always felt like a uniquely North American "problem" of excess), we decided that our teensy tiny apartment just could not be comfortably home with every nook and cranny filled with boxes. We realized that our frustration was going to ultimately resolve itself by having us decide it was impossible to live in such a small place (and thereby increasing our rent by several hundred dollars a month) or by renting a little extra space for a fraction of that cost.

After doing some online research, we headed over to a place that's only a couple blocks from here, and rented a small unit immediately. We proceeded to take over three loads (in our little Nissan). Then spent the rest of the day really cleaning and re-organizing the space.

The decision felt great. It was a sense of settling in on a deeper level than I think we'd allowed ourselves to do before.

Now I'm a good, bone-weary tired. The cat has curled up across my legs. (It's warm enough this evening that we have all our windows and the front door wide open and I'm still wearing shorts!) The coffee table in front of me is completely cleared off (for the first time in over a month) except for a lovely candle with a sturdy flame. I can hear a soccer game being vigorously played in the park across the street. It is a good night.