THESE LAST FEW DAYS have been packed . . . and rainy. . . and windy.  The end of the a quarter is always a stressful time, especially when it involves major things beyond the classroom.  This quarter has been good; I always enjoy my time with seniors.  Then there are the add-ons, things that are required but are not part of the day-to-day rhythm: the faculty meeting I led, the things I’m supposed to do with my church’s pastor-search committee.  Plus there’s whatever’s left of the stuff of life for me: things with friends, trying to keep my heart and mind on important things, keeping a clean apartment and orderly existence.  So even though I have a stack of papers to grade and outlines to edit, the fact that the next couple of weeks are a lot more free is a good thing.

Stop and go and stop again.  You do your best to build in some other and deeper rhythm, the way you start and stop your days or weeks.  It doesn’t always work, doesn’t always take.  Things pile up, important life leaks out slowly.  Rest becomes more of a far-out destination than a daily reality.  Breaks like this, I think, at least remind me of that, remind me of the possibility and the importance of striving for it.

Abstract thoughts on a rainy Sunday evening.  It’s a good way, though, to get your hear back into the game.  The game that matters, hopefully.