St. Vlad's Seminary: the continuing saga of application submission

I believe that I have finally put the three-to-four page autobiographical essay behind me, as of 11:30 p.m. last night.  I managed to cram three-to-four pages into six.  I found handwriting to be a painful experience, as most of my writing these days is limited to a few numbers and words on a 'cut list' (which is furniture-speak for "list of parts and their respective measurements for the purpose of manufacturing a piece of furniture").

I have finished Fr Alexander Schmemman's Journal... , which was wonderful.  It was like looking through a small porthole into his inner life and thoughts.  I love his attention to the beauty of the weather and the 'natural world' as he perceived it during drives to Labelle or on his walks from the office to chapel.  I have the same sense of a 'cleansing' while driving to or from work through the hills of Georgia.  Especially during the fall.  I recently received a promotion at work, which has me stationed in a small 'cave' inside of our factory, and far removed from the above mentioned hills.  But recently I was afforded an opportunity to experience humility by returning to my former 'lower position' as furniture builder at our design studio.  This returned me to the necessity of that drive through the hills.  I was not looking forward to missing the fall color this year, being stuck in my little white-collar cave.  But now, I have at least a small opportunity to see some color for a little while.  Small unexpected blessings are sometimes the best of all.

It seems to me that in this case, I was given something that I did not want, that I even resisted, and received something that was totally unexpected.   It was humbling to be asked to go back and do a job that I had literally quit.  I had no choice, it was a command, and it certainly was unfair and a bit of a 'dirty trick'.  But what I found was that it was what I needed, and I am not looking forward to leaving.  What I wanted vs. what I needed.  Oh, great mystery.