It was the first night all semester I walked to class alone...and it felt weird. As usual, the family had enjoyed a fine dining experience at Saga. Only this night, it was just Eric, Anna, and me. Our usual companions, Drew and Dylan, didn't make it that night. Drew was busy working on his paper. So Anna and I made a couple of sandwiches for him, wrapped them up in napkins and loaded them into my book bag and off I went to class.
Upon arrival, I saw a few of my classmates gathered outside of the classroom. Some were eating their dinner. Others were just visiting with each other. This was a little strange because most weeks when I arrived no one was in the hall and the classroom was abuzz with the chatter of the early arrivals. It was when I saw them standing there that I knew something was up. The door to our classroom was wrapped like a package, a foreshadowing of the gift that was to come.
As classmates continued to gather, the volume grew as the numbers of people did. For most of the semester I've attached myself to a precious young man, Drew. He has been encouraging. Shared his wisdom with me. Laughed with me. Listened when I was struggling with something as we walked to class. Even helped me avert tears at times. We've talked about his dating life. His theology. The Bible. The famous Boa Family Sandwich. And all sorts of random bits of information. It's been a real joy to get to know him in the context of this class.
But one of the costs of that was that I didn't interact much with other people in the class. Now I wouldn't change a thing! My friendship with Drew is precious to me, and something I'm delighted I invested in. But the result has been that I don't always have someone to hang with during these spontaneous hang outs. So I float a bit. It's all good, just a little uncomfortable for a Relator who craves those deep conversations over endless small talk.
After we had tracked down a couple of classmates who were running late, the door was opened and in we went. And it was magical! The harsh fluorescent lights were off and the room was filled with the soft light from lamps, the sparkle of Christmas lights, and the warmth of a video fire. We could even hear the crackle of the logs. The chairs were arranged in a circle with the ever-present Jesus candle in the center. A table of goodies had been laid out just like the banquet at the wedding feast. The room was set up to celebrate!
As we settled into our seats, I found myself seated between two people I hadn't really interacted with much throughout the course. Kyle and Reuben. Kyle has always impressed me as a real intellectual. But he has this fun whimsical side too. He loves movies and music and consumes them voraciously, tracking his favorites and his reviews on a blog he maintains. And Reuben is charming with his beautiful accent. I'll tell you more about that later.
Dan opened by simply sharing with us his thoughts about the semester. He answered some questions we had provided. Some with humor, others with stories, and the first with a list of his favorite books for believers. I'm sad to say I haven't read a single one of them. Better get busy! Once again, he demonstrated what we had been learning in the class, that the teacher is part of the learning. That their experience, world views, passions, can't help but become part of the learning process. His willingness to share bits of himself did so much to make this a beautiful experience for me.
We took a moment to enjoy some of the bounty Dan and his boys had provided, including some fresh baked pumpkin bread his youngest son had made for us. Precious! After a bit of mingling, we settled back into our seats. Remember the lights were low. The room was filled with a sense of peace and just a touch of nostalgia that this would be our last night together. As we got ready for the next portion of our evening, some people found spots on the floor. Others stayed in our seats. And then Dan started us off.
As voices filled the room, we were all transported to another time. Reading the Gospel of Mark as a class was breathtaking for me. Hearing God's Word read corporately almost always moves me to see it in a way that I hadn't before. To see patterns. To hear the words afresh. To notice things in stories I hadn't noticed before. And to hear all of the voices of my classmates was dear to me. Now back to Reuben. I could literally listen to that man read the phone book. But to hear his melodic voice, his grasp of how to use tone and volume, and to think that English wasn't his first language, I was captivated. He read with such authority and care and I was deeply impacted by the words he spoke. What a gift.
After 90 minutes and reading the first 11 chapters, Dan encouraged us to finish that evening at home because he wanted us to have some time to share. So we gathered back in our circle. And we took a moment to share what we had taken from the course. It was a precious time of acknowledging the learning each of us had experienced. It was a time to learn more about each other. It was a time to learn through the experiences of others.
For me, it was a time to reflect on this great adventure I've started. An adventure of doing something I've never been particularly good at. Something I was really terrified to do. Something I could not have done alone. From my husband's belief in me. To the encouragement I received from Dan. The way Drew challenged me to see things through the eyes of someone so different from me. The way I knew my girls were watching me to see how I would be a student. And my colleagues who always had a kind word about my papers, my hard work, and my enthusiasm for my learning. The way I learned to rely on the Holy Spirit! For without that Secret Ingredient, my efforts will be meager. I learned that truth in my reading, and I learned it in my life. I pray I will be transformed by that learning.
Thank You, God. Thank you, Dan. Thank you family and friends for supporting and encouraging me.
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