People in southern California need to quit complaining about the rain! 

Having grown up in a part of the country with four distinct seasons, I love a good rain.  Whether it be a cold fall rain, a sudden summer thunderstorm, or a gentle spring shower ( leading to those awesome May flowers!), I think rain is wonderful.

In my family of origin, rainy Sundays were reserved for Church, soup and sandwiches for lunch, and then a nap.  My mother had several family quilts that were brought out only for such naps and getting to snuggle under one was quite a treat.

In a way, rain gives us permission to slow down. You need to bundle up and exercise a bit more self- care when it rains.   You need to take along extra shoes and pull out your rain coat and drink hot chocolate. You have to drive a little slower and you want to linger in bed a bit longer in the morning.

I love our usual sunny California days but a rainy day, every once in a while like today, is a blessing that I appreciate very much.   Even if my feet are slightly damp and my hair is seriously frizzy!

This afternoon, I came up to campus a couple of hours early to do some work before the play begins.  When I drove onto campus, I saw the manger sitting in Chapel Circle.  Just the structure is up so far (I have heard that the animals, parents and baby will arrive next week)  but it made me glad to know that once again this year, there will be that special symbol of our faith on campus. 

Like most people, I love the Christmas season.  I love addressing my Christmas cards on the Saturday after Thanksgiving each year, listening to the Johnny Mathis Christmas album, putting out all the decorations that Benjamin or I have made or collected over the years and sitting close to the sparkling tree late at night by myself drinking hot chocolate.  I love baking the entire weekend before finals, listening to all my Christmas music and stopping to dance with my son EVERY SINGLE TIME “Rockin around the Christmas Tree” plays.    

But most of all, I love the quiet feeling of expectation this time of year.  For the entire season, I always feel like something amazing could happen.  God could send another miracle just like he sent Jesus so long ago. I could have an opportunity to help someone who needs it or something joyful, and totally unexpected, could happen to any of us.

And the symbols of the season serve as small, constant reminders of the hope we should all have for the future.  Good things are coming our way!

This morning I saw a new freshman student in the Cafe and was able to greet him by name.  I have been trying to learn all our new students’ names since orientation but for this student, this was the first time I was able to call him by his.  It made me feel great, much more connected to the student, and from the smile on his face, it made him feel good too.

 

A person who is really good with remembering names is Nancy Onorato in the SDS office.  She is amazing at remembering people’s names and once she knows your name, she always uses it when she sees you.  From my office, I can hear her greet students and I can hear the pleasure in their voices when they respond. There is something powerful about being known by our names and acknowledged that way.

 

Little things like learning each other’s names makes being in any situation more personal.  We feel like we belong, that we have a place and others expect us to be part of the community.  How nice it feels when we are connected.  Being in a new situation (job, school, housing) can be overwelming.  Once we find just one way to connect in that new situation, our anxiety lessens and we begin to feel more and more comfortable.

 

So my thought for the day is that we should take the time to learn each other’s names.  You have my permission to start with me.  When you see me in the hallway of Cecilia, the Cafe, Bally’s or at the movies, please feel free to try this out with a cheery “Hi Shane.”

 

I grew up hearing the expression “The nature of life is change and the more you fight it, the more it hurts.”

I have always prided myself on being someone who does really well with change.  I went through a long period in college, grad school, and then early in my career when I moved at least once a year— for at least ten years straight. Yes, at times it was a hassle (I’m not the best packer!) but for the most part I was fine with it. It was always a new adventure to me.

When new people or projects come into my worklife, I have a knack for just diving right in.   I take to new folks right away. I don’t get hung up on the way things have always been.  I don’t dread change like so many folks do.  In fact, I usually find changes, even big ones, to be challenging and exciting.

Today, I realized I had a few minutes for a quick lunch break before the Mass of the Holy Spirit and I picked up the phone to call the one friend on campus who likes to eat lunch early.  The Cafe begins serving lunch at the super early time of 11:15 and my friend Melissa often heads over there to eat at that time because she has lots of C-hour meetings. 

Just as I was beginning to call her at the familiar extension I have been calling for the past eight years, I suddenly remembered that she doesn’t work here anymore.  She recently resigned to teach at the graduate level and to have more time with her family.  Intellectually, I think her move was a great one both personally and professionally.  For months as we have transitioned, I thought I was fine with the idea that she was not going to be on campus anymore.  

However, today, standing in line by myself in Cafe, I just felt lonely.  Even though I had known the change was coming for several months, I was just overwelmed with how much I missed my friend.  

So, since I can’t count on a quick lunch with her on campus now and again anymore, I guess I will need to make a change in our routine and find new ways to stay connected.   I’ll let you know how it goes.

I am starting to blog. Melissa taught me how.

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