Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Daily 5 - Day 313

Today's Daily 5:
  1. beef stew and jasmine rice for supper
  2. took little breaks in studying to take a walk, and later to do yoga.  it helped with focusing which was a definite challenge today.
  3. got through three stats sections, and part of a chapter of anatomy
  4. remembering to be thankful at moments I normally wouldn't
  5. choosing healthy snacks for study breaks, instead of filling my face with chocolate all day.

Oldest Image of Christ's Apostles Found

Have I mentioned recently that I loved the brief time I spent in Rome a couple years back?  That the church historian in me could quite happily spend days and weeks and years there?  That I had a number of profound experiences with God there, including experiencing Ash Wednesday mass in St. Peter's?

I liked Rome.  A lot.

It made me smile, today, then, to see this headline in the BBC news about an ancient image of some of the apostles that was uncovered just recently in one of the catacombs in Rome.  (The catacombs are definitely on my list for the next trip.)

Having One of Those Days

I'm having one of those days...

The distracted kind.

The kind where the painful personal stuff on my mind looms far bigger than the stuff (school work, mostly) that I really need to be focusing on.

The kind where you know the personal stuff needs some attention, but you just don't know exactly what kind of attention to give it, or what the next step in giving it attention, and stepping towards healing, is.

The fact that I'm less than engaged with the studying I've been buried in this morning - statistics - isn't helping.

I am not a math person.  Or at least not a "any math that involves more than basic addition or subtraction" kind of person.

And statistics requires formulas.  Lots of them.  I find myself constantly turning pages, knowing I should know what that letter in the formula represents, and that the problem contains the value to fill that letter in.  But I just can't remember what the letter is. 

It's going to be a very good thing that you can bring a double-sided sheet of notes and formulas into the exams for this class.  It's really my only hope.

And so, I'm off to give the personal a little attention.  I'll walk to the mailbox to mail a letter, and pause to just listen and pray.  I want to walk before the threatening thunder shower comes.

And hopefully, if I pause to pray and listen, the personal stuff will feel quieted, and I can focus.

Because I have many hours of studying ahead today.  And then a couple hours of a leadership training course tonight.

And distracted and discombobulated doesn't work well for either of those pursuits.

Measuring What Makes Life Worthwhile

I found this TED talk fascinating, and thought I'd share.