Keep on keeping on

This week is a particularly heinous week in our academic year. We have alumni council meeting on campus. And we have board of trustees meeting on campus. Then we have the 10 different events happening for Commencement, including rehearsals, receptions, services, etc, which all feel like 10 gazillion things that have to happen in orderly fashion. In some offices, we're focusing on finishing the Annual Fund. Other offices are trying to finalize admissions. We're also trying to beautify the campus to welcome our guests. And there are certainly a lot of them traipsing through our grounds -- All kinds of guests are coming on campus from students' family members to alumni/ae, to trustees, to other guests in our conf. center. The traffic increases exponentially, causing our regular routine, which isn't really very routine at all, to become much more... interesting. Interruptions become the norm because, well, they are the norm. I've found it more and more desirous to retreat into my office and complete the work that need to be done. But then I'm also a bit bi-polar. I want to be out mingling and talking and chatting with guests, not stuck inside a hot, stuffy office. Whatever we want to do, we have to stick to the tasks. We are committed to graduating students who will begin other journeys in their ministry. We are committed to keeping the seminary's mission and vision alive. We are committed to building community. We are committed to doing theological education. And to that end, I will deal with gowns and hoods and bishops and faculty and students and meetings and receptions and honorary degrees and whatever that comes our way.