Syllabus shock AGAIN!

Every Wednesday morning I sit down to schedule out my homework for the week, trying to spread it out, and when I count up how many hours of homework I have, I think YIPES! 13 HOURS! Plus I still have to write the 5-6 page paper for the elective class I just took!

BUT...then I remember...I HAVE gotten all my homework done so far, and on time too. :) I CAN do it. Every Tuesday afternoon, right before class, it all ends up being done. One way or another. No all nighters. No missing meals. Missing my family a bit though.

Well, tonight, after dinner, to the park we go! Then Grace goes to bed early. Then Scott & my time. :)

Quicker "syllabus shock" recovery than last week. That's progress. ~

Conflict & Making Mistakes

From my reading today~

Did you know…

Conflict has benefits ~
Releases tension
Promotes growth
Regulates distance between people
Prevents stagnation
Encourages dialogue
Eventually bringing people closer together
(from: Introduction to Counseling: Voices from the Field by Kottler, & Shephard, 2011, p. 98)

Making Mistakes ~
Re: showing empathy
“incorrect attempts at empathy are a normal part of counseling…When the counselor tries to communicate an understanding of a client’s feelings or thoughts and gets it wrong…If the counselor recognizes the client’s discomfort and apologizes for the mistake, the counselor-client bond is strengthened; repeated episodes of this failure-apology sequence assist the client in better tolerating the empathic failures that are inevitable in all intimate relationships (Wolf, 1988)”
(from: Introduction to Counseling: Voices from the Field by Kottler, & Shephard, 2011, p. 102)

I’m so encouraged to know making mistakes is
not only regular & acceptable,
but expected
and can actually have a positive effect!

Spiritual Family

In a writing assignment the other day, I had to list what “family” means me. I started by writing about my family of origin (my mom, dad & sister), proceeded to my extended family, and concluded the section mentioning my “spiritual family”. My spiritual family, those brothers, sisters & mentors who encourage me in my walk with God, are AS important to me as my blood relations.

This morning I was reading Matthew 12:46-50. Here’s what Jesus said,
46 While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak to him. 47 Someone told him, “Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you.”
48 He replied to him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” 49 Pointing to his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. 50 For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”

As I checked out the study notes below the text, I realized this same story is listed in Mark chapter 3 as well as Luke chapter 8. Hmmmmmm…..I went and read what those accounts said (pretty much the exact same thing) and looked at those text’s study notes as well. One of those comments resonated deeply with me.
“Membership in God’s spiritual family, evidenced by obedience to Him, is more important than membership in our human families.” (NIV Study Bible notes re: Mark 3:34)

Wow. I was struck again at the realization that the spiritual world is most important with God, over our physical world. This physical world is just a shadow, warming us up, teaching us, preparing us for what reality is.

“Thank You LORD for the treasure of our spiritual family! And thank You Jesus for confirming to us how important they are in our lives.”

Thank YOU for being a part of my family. :)

Tuesday night, 4:10 pm....

A friend asked how I'm doing.....
I'm doing OK, just busy, busy, busy with school,
trying to keep the house caught up,
pay attention to Scott & Grace,
keep up with some quality time with the Lord each morning,
and work out 2-3 times a week,
and ASK GOD WHAT I CAN TAKE OFF MY TO-DO LIST! :)
:)
Trying to adjust to the new routine...
looking forward to 2-3 weeks down the road when it starts to feel like the "new normal"?

But, THANK GOD, a dear friend (thank you Caroline!) brought us DINNER tonight!!!!! :)
Homemade pasta sauce & meat balls, pasta, organic lettuce, homegrown cucumber, and tasty lo-fat BROWNIES! :q
Tonight's homework is DONE!
Almost time to start boiling the water to toss those tender noodles in.....

Transforming Reflection

So here it is! The blog I keep mentioning I "might" start. :) I finally found a name!

So why did I pick "Transforming Reflection"? Well, I'd mentioned liking the word "reflection" and the reason why was because, as I started the Masters of Arts in Counseling program, I discovered that reflecting is one of my ways of processing what I'm learning. My favorite things to reflect on are events, wisdom, or insights that were transformational for me. By transformational, I mean, they helped change and shape me into who I am.

In this blog "reflect" can mean either 1) to look back & ponder, or it can mean 2) to give back, to show. This is it's two-fold meaning, a gift to me and hopefully a gift to you, and one that might cause further transformation.~

Ideally, I wanted to have some polished, classy introduction to this blog.
Realistically, with as crazy as my schedule has already become, this will just have to do.

I will NOT let my perfectionistic tendencies get in the way. :) Adjusting to 8-12 hours of homework a week, on top of an already busy life, has proved more difficult than I expected. But so far I AM exercising 2 of the 3 times I've scheduled for the week, HURRAY for me! :) Walking & yoga. That feels good. I'm pretty sure it's been one of my sanity preservers.

Tomorrow will be my 1st "real" class. The past 3 weeks I've been in "Graduate Seminar": a class preparing me for the journey through this graduate level course. This next class is "Basic Counseling Skills and the Helping Relationship".

I hope you will come back often to say "Hi", have a chance to reflect, and take part in some more transformation.~

Yahoo! Here I go!

"Hang on to your hats & sunglasses! This here is the wildest ride in the wilderness!" ~ Big Thunder Mountain Railroad announcer at Disneyland.

BTW-The "Invitation to a Journey" book in the photo above was GREAT! It is all about the spiritual journey all Christians take, our spiritual formation, of being conformed to the image of Christ for the sake of others. AMAZING read. The "Thriving" book was good as well. It's sub-title is "A Manual for Students in the Helping Professions" and it's all about how to THRIVE, not just survive, as you head into the journey of the helping professions.