The Old Lady on Campus

I've known from the beginning that I was not going to be the typical seminary student.  I am 12 years past my post-graduate degree.  I have 3 children.  I'm 3_ years old (you didn't REALLY think I would put my age did you?).  I am perfectly aware I will be older than most of the other students.  So why did friday night come as such a surprise to me?

Friday night there was a picnic for new students at the home of one of the professors.  We were encouraged to bring our families and get to know each other and some of the staff members.  So I loaded up the husband and 2 of the 3 kids (my oldest wasn't able to clear her busy social calendar for mom) and off we went.  Yep, I was the oldest new student there.  No surprise right?  What did surprise me was when 2 different people, (yes 2, completely independent of each other) came up and asked me if I was a staff member!!  Suddenly I look old enough to be a tenured professor!!!!  I simply smiled and told them  no I was going to be a new student too.  Luckily neither of them passed out from the shock, I'm not sure I would have revived them!  Just kidding, I would have...eventually.

At another point in the evening several of the new students were chatting and one of them made the comment that it was going to be hard to get back into the habit of studying after being off for 2 months for summer.  SERIOUSLY?? 2 months?  Try a decade, kid!!!  What was I thinking?!?!?  I left that picnic with a serious case of "What have I done?!?"

It's been a couple of days though and I have had time to process this a little bit.  There are advantages to going into this at my age and with my experience.  Yes I'm not the traditional student but that doesn't mean I'm less of a student.  I don't EVER want to stop growing, stop learning, stop trying to become what God wants me to be or do what He wants me to do.  If that means I spend my 30's and 40's in seminary as the old lady on campus than I will.  I will do it proudly.

We are promised in Psalm 32:8 "I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go.  I will counsel you and watch over you."  This is where he has instructed me to go.  This is where I belong right now.  I will trust in him always.