This N' That

Been busy lately, lots going on, and OLPH is no small part of it.

No, I don't have a new job, but I do have a new ally in the job hunt, a wonderful local priest who has connections EVERYWHERE. He now has a copy of my resume (which he thought impressive - I wish all the employers who have seen it agreed with him... *sigh *), and he is forwarding it on to other powers that be in hopes that this hook might snag a catch. He agrees with me...I HAVE to get out of where I am. God bless this man! Abundantly!

There may also be help coming for school, but I don't know for certain. The good thing is that people who know me seem to think that my going to Ave Maria for an MTS is a good thing, and you know who benefits from my studies? The Church. If I don't put the knowledge I will gain to use, then it is a loss. The program is designed to place those who partake into God's service. The secular world has no use for it.

And so I go, God willing. Or, in Spanish, "O'jala".

(Actually, that Spanish word has Moorish influence - it comes from the Arabic, "God willing". In Arabic, God is "Allah."

And that's your language lesson for today...you didn't know I'd provide that for you, did you? And it's a twofer...Spanish and Arabic.

Speaking of school, I received an envelope from Ave Maria today, and I began to panic, thinking they are calling in the accounting already! But it's a thin envelope, if a large sized one, so I opened it and found my birthday gift: my official grade for my first official Graduate Theology credit!

I'm a 4.0!

Yeah, I know, that's not a surprise, I did well on my papers and you all know it, but it's different seeing the formal final grade in print, with the GPA right there, 4.0. The last time I had a 4.0 for the semester, it was from my Mexico semester, and just after I got that Grade, I was contacted by the Dean of Academic Affairs at my college as he wanted to give me the news that I was being nominated into a Social Sciences Honor Society - for my well-rounded and promising academic acheivements. I accepted, I have the pin and the certificate to prove my membership, but as it's never been of any benefit to me, it's not on my resume. Maybe if I put it there someone would hire me. Hmmm...Greek words with academic honors, years and years out of school....let's hire this girl and find out why she still hasn't figured her life out when she had such a promising written history!

Right.

So I have a 4.0. A 1 credit class. Somehow, I don't think I can live up to that GPA if I do take 5 cedits next semester, but hey, if God provides the money, I'll provide the effort, and if I fall short of an A but still do decently, God will still be glorified. The good thing is that God doesn't expect us to be anything but human, and where we think we're failing, He's still succeeding.

How's that for a paradox on a Tuesday?

I can't believe people are reading this drivel.

Sorry, all, I'm actually just working off some nerves. I'm giving a talk tonight on my occult affairs. I'll mostly be speaking of experience, will provide some definitions and Church teaching (to include the CCC) to start it off, and then I'm going to tell my story, including some that hasn't appeared on my blog. I don't know who will be there, if anyone, but these things are always fun. It's my first time as a speaker, and those who were there last month, most of them, anyway, expressed interest in the topic.

I'll do my best, but I may not be able to answer some of their questions. I may be able to point them towards resources that will answer them, however.

And in all these things, all of the above, all of what I am about to do...may God and God alone be glorified. I am only His servant, and usually not a very good one.

One thing I learned during Lent and the lesson keeps coming....there's a long ways between me and the title of "Saint". We are all called...but the road is narrow and the gate is pretty rusty.

UPDATE: I just got back; the talk went well, no one threw things at me, and the service was great at the restaurant! Theology of Tap is really a great program. In my neck of the woods we tend to have a lot of knowledgable Catholics who attend, a lot of people who are asking the right questions and trying to understand their faith, or have the knowledge already and just love to be with people who share their faith. We are a small group, but people are wandering in from other locales as well as our own, which is great. No topic is chosen yet for next month, it might be a "Grill the New Priest" session.